Spooky! Precure
by MissMelli
Summary: Frighton, the world of fear, has become active years after its initial defeat. The disturbance can be sensed all the way from Earth, where a small bat fairy named Boo sets out to find promising young women to become new Pretty Cure warriors and stop the fear from spreading once again.
1. Chapter 1- Witchcraft

A gentle jostling, like the softest tremor in her heart, awoke her from her sleep. Bleary eyed, she stretched her legs wrought with the kind of stiffness only an immeasurably deep sleep could bring. How long had it been? Whatever the answer, she had been out long enough for a healthy trail of drool to have wiggled its way out of her mouth, up her face and into the tuft of fur atop her head.

That was when she realized she was upside down.

Readjusting her orientation so she was right side up, the bat fairy rubbed the dried drool from her face and the sleep from her eyes as she tried to recall what she had been doing before she fell asleep. Looking around the darkened world that surrounded her, she couldn't even remember where she was, let alone why she was there or how she had even arrived there in the first place.

Pink eyes finally blinking open to clarity, the bat spied a thin tendril of sunlight oozing in lazily through an opening a little ways away. She floated curiously through the blackness in its direction, squinting as the light washed over her eyes. Poking her head out of the cave opening cautiously, the fairy was surprised to recognize where she was in an instant. The gnarled old tree that stood isolated from the others was a clear landmark, as was the patch of withered ground that surrounded it.

The strange sensation in her chest that awoken her gained meaning with sudden clarity as she realized what must be happening. The impending sense of doom was all too familiar. Frighton was active once again.

Panic swelling inside her, the fairy held her paws out before her, trying with all her might to search for anything she might be able to summon to aid her. There was no way she could even enter Frighton alone without some help. A gentle glow emanated from between her paws, and in a dazzling flash three orbs of light formed before her. They quivered excitedly as though in great anticipation for things to come before they became wrapped in iridescent foil like a candy, the covering casting multicolored light every which way across its surface.

She smiled a bright, toothy grin. These would be very helpful indeed. Three Pretty Cure. Three girls who would be able to fight for peace on earth, the promise of their courage wrapped in the shimmering foil before the fairy. All she had to do was find them, and soon.

The bat fairy clapped her paws together and the little wrapped candies disappeared in a puff of glitter. The sun was only just rising, so she had a whole day ahead of her to begin her search. Spreading her heart-dotted wings, the little pink fairy took to the sky.

"Mission: find the three legendary Pretty Cure, and save the world, boo!"

* * *

The sun was barely up when she awoke, which meant Sofía was barely up in time to leave. She had a bit of a personal vendetta against getting up before the sun, something about it just didn't seem right. Of course, staying true to that lifestyle meant making sacrifices, namely brushing her teeth and hair before she had to get into the car. She wouldn't make a great first impression today, but it would make an even worse impression to be late on her first day of class this year. She had the rest of the year to get senioritis. Andres was already waiting for her in the passenger seat, an eyebrow cocked when he caught sight of his sister.

"Your breath reeks," he complained when she shut the door behind her and started the car. Sofía punched her brother hard in the shoulder, which only made him whine louder.

"Heyyy, bully!" he fussed, pouting dramatically and rubbing his arm.

"You're a freshman, you'd better get used to it," she retorted, sticking out her tongue at him as she backed out of the driveway. She wasn't thrilled about the idea of going to the same school as her little brother again, something they hadn't done since they were young.

The two got along well enough, though she couldn't help but feel overshadowed by him, literally and figuratively. When they got out of the car in the school parking lot he towered over her, despite being three years her junior. His academics were spotless, and his charisma earned him droves of friends, evidenced by the flock of other bright-eyed and bushy-tailed freshmen running up to meet him as soon as they caught sight of his shaggy mop of hair in the crowd. Sofía branched off from her brother's side without so much as a goodbye to find her own flock of admirers.

Was two big enough to constitute a flock? Sofía wasn't one to split hairs over logistics. Only one from her two person fanclub was waiting for her in their usual spot, a half wall in the inner courtyard they rebelliously claimed as their own to sit on during off periods and lunches. This year it would be even more exclusive, since everyone knew the death stare of a senior was ten times as effective as one from a junior.

Peyton waved excitedly as she caught sight of her friend, hopping down from the wall to give her a bone-crushing bear hug.

"Sofííííííía!" she cried, lifting her up off the floor, "It's been way too long! Why didn't you come earlier we need to catch up on summer goings on!"

As she was lifted, Sofía's face was engulfed by a mass of red curls, and she spat out the hairs that stuck to her face once she was put down.

"Sorry, I slept in a little late. Do you happen to have a hair brush in your bag?" she asked, hopping up on the half wall with her friend plopping down beside her.

"You know I don't brush my hair! Audrey probably has one, but I think she's off trying to win over the jocks before volleyball tryouts this week."

"Is she? I didn't think she was actually going to do it. I hope she's not trying too hard to fit in, I think she could really make goth-jock a thing if she just goes for it," she laughed, swinging her legs out in front of her. "When are tryouts? We should go and support her."

"Tomorrow I think. But don't give me that bull, I know you just wanna go to ogle Bing," Peyton accused with a cheeky grin, side-eying her friend. Sofía's face flushed pink at the thought of the school's volleyball prince, but she smiled good-naturedly.

"Well who's to say I can't do both?!"

* * *

The bell rang and the pair departed, promising to catch up over lunch. When noon finally rolled around, Sofía's stomach was audibly rumbling, so much so that the boy next to her looked over in concern and asked if she were going to be okay. She would be okay as soon as she had some carrots and hummus in her.

Returning to the half wall, she spied her friend Audrey, who was impossible to miss with her blue-black hair, asymmetrical cut, and shaved eyebrows. Next to her sat someone else, though it wasn't anyone Sofía could recognize from behind. Preparing her best senior glare as she rounded the wall, her breath caught in her throat as she spied Bing Morgan, resident heartthrob and object of her affections.

Bing pushed her dark hair over her shoulder, looking down at Sofía with a handsome smile. The smaller girl was suddenly acutely aware that her hair was still a birds nest, and her breath could likely kill a small animal.

Attempting to casually and daintily cover her mouth with her hand, she smiled, "Oh hey, I don't usually see you around here," she crooned, trying her best to sound breezy and effortless.

"Yeah, Audrey and I were talking last period, I'm just waiting for my friend to bring me back a burrito," Bing replied with a small smile that made the corners of her almond eyes crinkle.

"Oh, you like burritos huh?" Sofía asked, raising a brow and leaning against the half wall with one hand outstretched, the other still covering her mouth. Super casual. Bing's smile grew with mild amusement, and she nodded mercifully. "Did you know burritos are from Mexico?"

Audrey's lips were pressed in a thin line, trying to suppress a giggle, though at this she snorted abruptly. Bing raised her brows and laughed softly, "Is that so?" By this point Audrey wasn't even attempting to hide her smile, and Sofía's face reddened.

"Oh my god Sof, you still haven't brushed your hair?" Peyton called out from the doorway, curls bouncing as she hopped over to the three by the wall. At this point Sofía hung her head in utter defeat, though to her surprise a small brush was offered to her by the curvy prince sitting on the wall.

"You can borrow mine, I'll be putting my hair up for practice anyway," Bing offered with a small smile.

"T-thanks!" Sofía sputtered, taking the brush gratefully. Bing dismissed the thanks with a wave of her hand, hopping smoothly off the wall.

"Don't worry about it. I should probably go wait in the parking lot though, see you later."

With that she was gone, Sofía's eyes following her out and Audrey's lips parting in hearty laughter.

"What the hell was that?" the black haired girl snorted as her smaller counterpart joined her on the half wall and unpacked her lunch.

"I got nervous, alright? But it worked didn't it? I got her hairbrush!" Sofía cried triumphantly, holding the brush up like a prized idol.

"Now you can make a voodoo doll using the hairs, just like you've always wanted!" Payton teased, hopping up beside her.

"Shut uuup! Obviously I'm going to have to give this back to her, so it's an excuse to meet up again. On my own terms this time, I'll be on my A-game."

"You didn't do so well this time around, and this was your home turf and you were surrounded by your own friends," Audrey pointed out, taking a big bite of her sandwich.

"I wasn't expecting her to be here! She caught me unawares; next time I'll slay."

* * *

With Andres at soccer tryouts, that meant a quiet ride home, which Sofía was grateful for. She got in the zone when she drove alone; the only thing louder than her singing was the radio, and nothing could top her driver seat dance moves. It was because of her emphatic performing that she almost didn't notice the little girl crying on the side of the road. Almost. When the girl caught her eye, she slowed down and turned down the music, looking with concern at the child in the green dress. Her skin was dark, tear-stained and mottled with pale patches that belied the redness of her sobbing face.

Sofía was seconds from rolling down the window and calling out to her, until she took a moment to consider what that would look like to an onlooker. Preferring to stay off a watchlist, she pulled over into the parking lot a ways down the street and trotted back up the street towards the girl.

"Hey, my name's Sofía," she introduced, crouching down beside the girl. "Did you get separated from your family?"

The girl pulled her patchwork hands from her eyes and looked over at her, barely able to control her trembling lip as she squeaked a soft "Yes."

Sofía furrowed her brow, looking around to see if she could spot anyone. "Can you tell me what they look like? I'll help you find them."

The girl wiped her eyes and nose on the back of her arm, taking a moment to regain her composure and speak more clearly. "M-my nanny. A big monster got her." Sofía frowned. She wasn't sure she was in a position to be dealing with 'big monsters'. If there was some guy running around attacking people in the park, there wouldn't be much she could do about it, standing under five feet tall and only remotely menacing when she wielded a chancla.

"...what kind of monster?" she asked tentatively, reaching for her cell phone in case this warranted police action.

"L-like a dog," she stuttered, "It had lots of teeth and I ran."

"Can you take me to where the dog was? I promise I'll keep you safe. You can hold my hand," Sofía offered, holding out her hand. The girl hesitated, but nodded slowly and grasped her fingertips.

"You're very brave, I bet your parents are real proud of you. What's your name?"

"Evelyn."

"Nice to meet you, Evelyn."

As they walked Sofía felt chills scurrying through her bones, though it was mid-August and there was so little wind that the stillness was almost suffocating. Evelyn stopped walking suddenly when a shrill, almost inorganic noise cut through the thick air. That sure as hell didn't sound like any dog or person that Sofía had ever heard.

"Stay here," she cautioned, stepping tentatively forward off the manicured park grass and further into the shrubbery that lie beyond. Evelyn waited nervously by the playset beyond the woods while Sofía trudged through the bushes, listening intently for any more noises. She could hear a scuffle going on, and another shrill noise that carved its way into her ears, close enough to startle her.

Finally she saw something, though what it was she couldn't really understand. Just beyond a layer of trees was a tall, vaguely humanoid figure without any distinguishable limbs a pure white face, marked only by two slit shapes that almost looked like eyes. The rest of it was impossibly black, so much so that it gave her a headache to look at it for too long.

On the ground beside the monstrosity was what must've been the dog that Evelyn had seen. It too was impossibly black, but without any features at all. Its face was angular and pointed in a way that resembled a fox, and didn't appear to have any eyes, or even a mouth from what she could see. As if the scene was not absurd enough, what appeared to be a mauve bat adorned with pink hearts was tugging on the white face of the humanoid creature as it writhed, and the fox monster batted at the heart-tipped tail.

"Go back to Frighton, you creep! Leave the people on earth alone, boo!"

Sofía became more confused as the bat cursed at the monsters, still tugging on the face of the taller creature. She drew in a sharp gasp as the fox monster opened the mouth that she could not see before. Its mouth stretched across almost the entire length of its pointed face, and was filled with needle like teeth that were as pitch black as the rest of it. The sound seemed to draw the attention of the fox and the bat, both of whom turned their heads to face her.

"Get out of here human! It is very dangerous here, boo!" the bat cried, the fox taking a few tentative steps towards her.

"I-I'm looking for the little girl's nanny! Where is she?" she called out to the bat, the ridiculousness of the situation lost on her in her fear. She crouched down to pick up a stick from the forest floor, wielding it like a club in case the fox monster should creep any closer.

"This _is_ the girl's nanny, boo! I'm trying to save her, so please get out of here before I have to save you too, boo!" the bat cried out in exasperation. So that limbless shadow of a thing was the nanny?! What on earth had happened to her?!

The thing that had once been a human let out another long shrill "_Exxxx_" noise, arms slowly beginning to grow out from the black void of its body and grip the little bat. At the same time, the shadow fox leapt towards her, and Sofía shrieked, swinging with all her might at the thing. It caught the stick effortlessly in its gaping mouth, and snapped it just as easily.

Sofía swallowed hard. She was a good person, she loved animals, she was even vegetarian! Why was this thing hunting her down?

"Get out of here, boo!" the bat demanded again, attempting to bite at the shadowy hands that gripped her.

"N-no! I'm here to help Evelyn!" Sofía insisted, attempting to reassure herself as much as the bat. "I'm not afraid!"

Suddenly, with a flash of light a shimmering foil wrapped candy appeared before the girl. The bat looked up in amazement, and Sofía stared at it, bewildered.

"Listen to me, boo!" the bat instructed, her breath shallow as she was squeezed by the monster. "Take that and say 'Nightmares nevermore, trick-or-treat transformation' and throw it on the ground! You can stop these monsters, boo!"

"Trick-or-treat? It's August!" Sofía wailed, as though that were the most pressing inconsistency in this situation.

"Do it now, boo!"

The fox monster's back arched as it prepared to leap at her again, so the distraught girl reached before her and grasped the simmering candy in her hand.

**"Nightmares nevermore, trick-or-treat transformation!"**

A dazzling light shot from between her fingers, and just as the monster leapt off the ground towards her she threw the glowing candy down hard.

There was an explosion of purple smoke that billowed out from where the candy had made contact with the ground. Despite its density, somehow Sofía didn't find it hard to breathe as it enveloped her and lifted her up off the ground. Inside the column of smoke, purple shimmers fluttered about her, and even her own skin began to glow. She realized as she looked down at her glimmering skin that her school uniform had disappeared, and a fluorescent spiderweb pattern traced itself down her torso, a dark leotard popping up beneath the web pattern. Flinging her hands out to either side, little sleevelets burst into being on her forearms and Sofía grinned, thoroughly enjoying her weightless fun.

With a playful twirl a purple skirt swirled into place, and giving herself a tight hug brought a grey corset snugly around her. Two quick clicks of her heels and grey boots with purple toes formed up her calves. Clapping twice over her head, an oversized black witch's hat appeared from the smoke between her hands. Once she pulled it down onto her head, a light washed over her hair, growing it impossibly long and dying it a vibrant purple. Her violet locks parted down the middle, twisting back behind her until they formed two long pigtails. Finally, the shimmering candy wrapper of the smoke bomb latched onto her chest, transforming into a full purple bow above her bust.

It seemed her weightless adventure was over as she fell back down to the ground, the smoke bursting away from her as soon as her feet touched the earth. The force of the explosion blasted the lunging fox monster out of the air, much to Sofía's relief. She held out a finger and twirled it as though casting a spell before pointing triumphantly to the sky.

**"A mischievous smile on a moonlit night, Cure Witch!"**

The girl took a minute to catch her breath; it felt as though she might faint with all the power and energy she could feel coursing through her. Another loud "_Exxxx_" like hiss emitted from the mouthless humanoid creature that continued to squeeze the little bat. Anger swelling up in her, Cure Witch charged towards the thing in a rage propelled fervor. Unfortunately for her, she had misjudged the amount of power granted to her as a Pretty Cure. She hardly had time to make another move before she crashed head first into its black body. It seemed luck was on her side however, as the attack still proved effective enough to knock the monster backwards, releasing the little bat who floated weakly to the ground and tried to catch her breath.

"Are you okay?" the purple cure asked worriedly, kneeling down and scooping up the little bat. The furry creature nodded, though suddenly her eyes went wide and she rolled out of the cure's hands just as Witch felt a cold, clammy hand close around her ankle. She took a moment to be thankful for the spiderweb print leotard under her outfit as she was flung into the air by the humanoid monster, and made note of the lovely view as she began to plummet back down to earth. This time, she had longer to think about her next move, and Witch twisted in the air so she could land a swift kick to the back of the monster's head. It screeched as it fell forward, and the Pretty Cure ran over to the fairy once more.

"Help me out here! What am I supposed to do?" she pleaded, the bat fairy still slightly disoriented.

"Tire it out and then you will be able to purify..."

Witch nodded, not staying to listen to the rest as she dashed off again, delivering a hard uppercut to the monster that had begun to lift off on the ground and leaping after it so she could score another.

"Wait! You need to be smart about this, boo!" the fairy cried out in exasperation, flying after her. "Let me help you, boo!"

"No! I can do this by myself," Witch insisted, swinging a hard right hook that knocked the shadowy monster back out of the sky. When she touched down again, she noticed the fox monster slinking away into the woods.

"And just where do you think you're going?!" she demanded, dashing off towards it until the bat landed right on her face, stopping her in her tracks.

"Waah what do you think you're doing?! I'm trying to catch the little shit that attacked me!" she cried, tugging the bat off her face.

"You need to worry about the other one first, boo! There's a girl trapped in there, boo!"

Witch changed direction suddenly to lunge for the humanoid monster now, fist clenched and ready for a gut punch. She was inches from the beast when she swung her fist, but her hand never made contact. Instead she seemed to fly right through it and crashed into the ground a ways away.

"What a dirty trick!"

Looking behind her, the monster was nowhere to be seen. She panicked for a moment as she remembered the little girl, and dashed out of the woods towards the playground where she still waited, her brown eyes widening in shock as the purple haired girl charged towards her.

"Did the monster come out here?!" she demanded in a panic, but the little girl only shook her head slowly. The girl's eyes lit up as soon as she noticed the bat flying towards them however, and she plucked her out of the air and pulled the fuzzy fairy into a tight embrace.

"Cuuute! What's her name?"

"L-let me go, boo!" the bat squeaked, squirming in her childish vicegrip.

"Boo? Aww," she cooed gently, looking up at Witch, "Did you beat the monster?"

The cure faltered uncertainly, looking around, "Uhh, I don't know. I mean...I can't find it. And I can't find your nanny...but I promise to keep looking. Right now, I should take you home though. You'll be safer if we get you away from here."

Evelyn looked down, but nodded solemnly, letting Boo free. The girl seemed to be on the verge of tears again, which only made Witch feel worse about the whole situation, untransforming and grabbing a tight hold of the girl's hand to comfort her.

"I promise you I'll get her back. I'll rescue her," she vowed, taking the small hand in her own. "I'll save her, and anyone else who gets attacked by those things!"


	2. Chapter 2- Tryouts

"So what the hell was all that?"

Sofía had walked Evelyn to her car and driven her home, much to the relief of her mother. As soon as she was back in the car she drove back to the park to scour the woods for either of the monsters, the candy shaped smoke bomb in her hand in case she needed to transform yet again.

Despite her diligence, it seemed there was nothing to be found. Boo had flown off to keep looking while she took the girl home, but the bat was nowhere to be seen either. It was as if they had just vanished into thin air. How was she supposed to defeat things that could just disappear like that? Feeling pretty defeated herself, she got back in the car and puttered on home.

Walking into her bedroom she jumped at the sight of the bat sitting on her bed waiting for her, nearly hurling her bookbag at the unexpected visitor. Sofía shut the door behind her quickly and set her things down at her desk, pulling out the chair. The girl crossed her arms over her chest with a huff, demanding more information from the little bat now that they weren't in imminent danger.

Boo sighed, flopping back dramatic flair on the quilted comforter. "Well...where do I even begin, boo…"

"You can start with all that transformation nonsense!" Sofía exclaimed, finding the events that transpired exponentially more ridiculous now that she had calmed down and the adrenaline dissipated enough for her to be thinking clearly.

"You are destined to be a Pretty Cure, a legendary warrior of justice, boo," Boo explained slowly, though the expression on Sofía's face seemed to indicate she had no idea what she was talking about. "When you transform, you are granted powers that will allow to to protect the earth, boo. Those monsters you saw are from a place called Frighton. It's a world of fear that was destroyed a long time ago, but it seems like it has become active again, boo."

"Who is doing this?"

Boo shrugged.

"What do they want?"

Boo shrugged again.

"Ughh you're no help at all," Sofía whined, shuffling over to the bed and flopping down on it face first with an exasperated sigh. "Do you at least know where the monsters went?"

"I saw the Dread laying in the woods, boo. I think you injured it pretty bad since it was so close to you when you transformed, boo."

"Why didn't you attack it?"

"It can't turn anyone else into monsters, boo. It only has one mask, and it used it on that young lady, boo."

"Mask?"

"The Dread carry around Terror Masks on their tails. If they manage to put it on your face, then you become blinded by fear and become an anxoid, boo. I couldn't find the anxoid anywhere, boo."

Sofía lay and processed the information for a moment before rolling onto her back and looking up at the patterns across her popcorn ceiling. "Why don't we go find that Dread and make it tell us why it's here and where it hid the anxoid?"

Boo nodded thoughtfully. "We could do that, boo. You're also not alone on this mission. There are supposed to be three Pretty Cures around here to help stop Frighton, boo."

The brunette sat up quickly, "There are others?! How do we find them?" The notion of having a whole team of magical warriors was exciting, and a little comforting. She hadn't managed to get everything done herself this time around, but maybe with help they could get this Frighton business over with before it got too out of control.

"We need to find people who are brave of spirit and kind of heart. Those people will be the most likely candidates, boo."

"Well I can promise you one thing. I won't lose, not again. I won't let another one get away from me, and as soon as we find that anxoid again I will purify it before it can escape."

* * *

Good fortune would have it that Andres enthusiastically recounted all his stories from his first day of high school, so Sofía wasn't pressed too much about what she did that day. She had a feeling her parents wouldn't much like the idea of her running around dressed like a bruja and fighting fear monsters from another world. And even _that _they would take over her keeping a pet bat in her room, though Boo insisted she was a fairy and not a bat thank-you-very-much. Sofía's parents likely wouldn't care about this distinction.

Andres blabbed on about how easy his classes were for him, how stellar he had been at his tryout, and how the coach gave him a look that totally meant he was definitely going to be on the team.

"_Oh yeah? Well I'm on a team of elite warriors destined to save the world,"_ Sofía thought, her contempt only betrayed by the slightest of smug smiles.

* * *

Boo was adept at remaining hidden; even Sofía didn't know where she was half the time. The next morning she got up much earlier than the day before, giving her vendetta against waking before the sun a rest so she could properly get ready. After all, today was the day she would be giving Bing her brush back, and that required the help of flawless skin, silky tresses, and minty fresh breath, or so she thought.

After pulling into the school parking lot and kicking Andres out of the car, she took another moment to check herself in the rearview mirror. On the off chance that she ran into Bing unexpectedly again, she didn't want to be caught looking anything less than fabulous.

Her hard work didn't go unnoticed, as both Peyton and Audrey seemed thoroughly impressed with her as she strutted to the wall.

"Looking good," Audrey complimented with a raucous whistle. "Is today the day?"

"Yep! Today I can't be beaten. I've slowly been building up to this day. Freshman year when she sat by me in math and I let her borrow my calculator. Then, sophomore year we were partners in gym and I let her win at our basketball drills."

"_Let_ her win? She's an athlete and you're a munchkin," Audrey protested, though Sofía pretended not to hear her.

"Then last year we had chemistry together and every time her friend wasn't there she'd partner with me! This is my year, everything has been building up to this!"

Peyton smiled, stifling a small giggle, "Well we're rooting for you!"

* * *

The school day went by without a hitch, besides a minor instance of horror when a wasp was spotted terrorizing the students in the back of the math class. Despite the relative ease however, there were murmurs of dissent.

"I heard Emily, Olivia's big sister, went missing yesterday. Her whole family is running around looking for her."

"Well doesn't her family have some...issues? Maybe she just ran away."

"Olivia told Sarah who told me that Emily didn't come home from babysitting. What if she snapped and kidnapped the kid?"

It wasn't until Sofía overheard the latter that she began to put two and two together. At least now she knew who the missing nanny was, and she hoped if she got to talk to Evelyn again she could find out more about the girl who had disappeared. Ideally, Boo was on the hunt for some answers. She appeared to be the authority on Frighton, but knew shockingly little about what was going on now. But that was nothing a little more detective work couldn't solve, right?

* * *

Sofía met up with Peyton outside the gym to lurk on the volleyball tryouts, sure to pick a spot close enough to see all the action but far enough away to seem casual. The two girls had a little laugh at Audrey's expense when she came out in baby blue athletic shorts and a ratty old white t-shirt that they had been given in middle school for their PE class, which she insisted were the only athletic clothes she had. So much for a stylish fusion of jock and goth fashion.

Despite how uncomfortable she looked in the outfit however, she performed better than the pair expected. As soon as the tryouts were over they whooped and hollered on their way to her, clapping her on the back in congratulation.

"Not too shabby!" Peyton cheered, "You're a lot more agile than you look!"

Audrey smiled brightly, "Thank you! I've been practicing a lot," she admitted.

"It shows."

The three looked about to see who had chimed in, noticing Bing approaching them with a warm smile. "You did well, I mean really well. How come you waited until your senior year to try out?"

"I guess I've just always been a little scared I wouldn't...fit in on a sports team," Audrey admitted sheepishly, "I mean you all seem nice but...I'm just different."

"Well I'm glad you tried out anyway," Bing said earnestly, "being held back by fear of things that _might_ happen is no fun. And I promise if anyone gives you a hard time I'll show em what for."

"Oh! Bing!" Sofía exclaimed suddenly, trying to hide the fact she had been waiting to talk to her since she spied her walking towards them. She swung her backpack around to the front and dug around in the front pocket, producing the little brush she had been given the day before. "I have your brush back for you, thanks for letting me borrow it! I even cleaned it out for you, don't worry."

The athlete turned her attention to Sofía, taking the brush with a gentle smile, "Oh hey, thanks hun. Glad I could help you out in your time of need," she joked, tossing the brush into her own bag.

"Well, there's actually one other thing you could do to help me out," Sofía admitted, Peyton's eyes widening as she realized where she was going. "I've got all this free time on Saturday and I was wondering if you could help me fill it? I was thinking lunch."

Bing seemed startled by the request, looking from Sofía to Peyton and Audrey to see if there was any indication this was a joke. Finding none, her gaze shifted back to the smaller girl nervously. "I-uh...I don't have any plans…"

"It's a date then! I can pick you up, if you want!" Sofía beamed. The prince of the volleyball court still seemed caught off guard, but she nodded slowly.

"Yeah, that'll probably work...I'll send you an address. Can I have your number?"

Sofía's heart nearly leapt from her chest at the request, and she eagerly spouted off the number while Bing tapped away at her phone. With that, Bing made a few excuses and her way to the door, promising Sofía an address that evening. Peyton and Audrey gave Sofía a congratulatory high five.

"I didn't think you had it in you, great job," Peyton giggled.

"It went a lot better than whatever that was yesterday," Audrey added with a snort.

"Aww you guys are so sweet," Sofía retorted, sticking out her tongue. "Now Audrey go get changed, I'm still your ride home right?"

* * *

Once Audrey reemerged wearing something a little more up her alley, the black haired girl joined her chicana companion as they headed for her car.

"So when do you find out if you've made it?" Sofía asked curiously, starting up the car.

"Um...by Friday I think," Audrey mumbled, barely audible over the rickety car engine as they pulled out onto the road. Sofía peeked over at her friend with concern.

"...Everything okay?"

"I just...I don't know if this is what I want. What if I don't like it? Or what if they don't like me?"

A small frown tugged on the corners of Sofía's lips. "Well...I guess you won't know until it happens. I mean...I know being uncertain doesn't feel great but-"

Suddenly Sofía swerved over to the side of the road, screeching to a stop. Audrey's eyes widened in panic as she braced herself against the dashboard and screwed her eyes shut.

"Wh-what the hell?! You scared the shit out of me," Audrey cried, not opening her eyes and hugging herself tightly.

"Sorry! There's just something I need to do, you stay in here!" Sofía ordered, flying from the car and leaving her friend with her heart leaping into her throat.

She had seen it.

A little black fox like creature darting across the grass on the side of the road had caught her eye, and she wasn't going to let it hide out again without answering to her. Sprinting off to where she had seen it run, Sofía caught sight of the Dread again, but this one seemed different. Its angular body and featureless arrow shaped head were all the same, but this one had something oblong and white on the end of its tail. It took her a second to realize this was the same mask the Anxoid from yesterday wore. What had Boo called them? Fear faces? No…

"It has a terror mask, be careful, boo!"

The pink bat appeared suddenly, landing on Sofía's head. "I thought you said it was safe because it already used its mask on the nanny?!" she cried in distress, pulling the bat from her head.

"This must be a different Dread, boo. The masks can only be brought over from Frighton, it wouldn't be able to make a new one. They're made of pure fear, and corrupt everything they touch, boo!"

"Then how do the Dread carry them without turning into one of those screeching monsters?"

"They are from Frighton, it's likely they too are made of darkness and fear, boo! They must be...oh no…"

"Wh-what? Do you know what's going on with these things?!" Sofía wailed, looking the bat fairy in the eyes.

"Maybe, I think- WAIT WHERE IS IT BOO?!" The fairy had turned her head, noticing the shadowy creature was no longer before them. Sofía looked herself, feeling a chill run up her spine.

"Shit! Well help me look for it!" she cried in frustration, throwing the fairy up into the air and running off in search of the monster. She had run a good few steps when she heard a scream that sounded eerily like her friend, and suddenly she remembered Audrey had been left alone in the car. Digging her heel into the ground, Sofía turned abruptly and ran as fast as her little legs could carry her back to the car where she saw the passenger side door open, Audrey curled up in the back seat, and the Dread with its wide mouth open, emitting a low growl.

"AUDREY, RUN!" Sofía yelled as she charged towards the car. The black haired girl looked up at the sound of her friend's call, and in that moment the Dread lunged, pinning her down and placing the mask on her face before slinking out from the car.

Sofía watched in horror as Audrey's hands scratched against the mask, trying to pry it from her face to no avail. Misty blackness began to seep out from the mask, enshrouding her in darkness until it was so opaque no part of the girl could be seen underneath.

"I'M SCARED!"

The scream was the last speech Sofía could make out until the voice of the thing that had once been her friend turned to discordant screeches and drawn out "Exxxxx" like hisses. The anxoid burst from the car, thrashing about fearfully at everything around it with frightening strength.

"Quick, transform before she can disappear too! I'll distract her, boo!" The bat fairy swooped down from the sky, landing on the monster's head and tugging at the slit-eyed white mask.

Reaching out before her with the illusion of practiced ease, Sofía grasped the shimmering candy in a tight fist, tears threatening to spill down her cheeks.

"I won't let you take my friend! **Nightmares nevermore, trick-or-treat transformation!"**

The smoke bon-bomb activated, and with a glint of determination reflected in her brown eyes she threw it down at her feet. Just as before, purple smoke billowed from the bomb and lifted her into the air, swirling around her as her outfit was replaced. She returned to the ground with a click of her heels on the pavement, a finger pointed outward aggressively.

"**A mischievous smile on a moonlit night, Cure Witch!"**

Taking a deep steadying breath, Witch locked her violet eyes on the monster that had consumed her friend. With sudden fury she shot towards it, landing a swift punch right against the mask which Boo had to roll aside to avoid.

"Get off her face!" she shouted, turning and kicking at the black void, "Get off her body!"

The monster tumbled backwards a bit, arms growing out from the formless body and propping itself upright. Suddenly, the fingers sharpened into claws and swung out towards the pretty cure who bailed to the left. A second clawed hand swung from her left, and batted the girl with ease into the side of her car, leaving a noticeable dent. Witch gritted her teeth, standing to her feet shakily.

"Wh-why is she attacking me?" she whimpered softly.

"The mask blinds her with her fears, boo! She probably doesn't even recognize you, boo. She is trapped!" Boo insisted, landing on the brim of Witch's hat. "Your friend is being held captive, and needs your help, boo!"

If unrestrained, the fire that ignited inside her could have turned the roadside trees to charcoal. She dashed off towards the screeching monster again, fists clenched, "I won't let you live in fear!" she cried, striking once, twice, three times against the white mask that obscured her friend.

The monster seemed visibly weakened, and Boo fluttered up towards Witch again, "Quickly, now is our chance, boo! You need to summon your Bonewick Wand! It will let you purify the monster and return your friend to normal, boo!"

Cure Witch nodded, following her instinct and tracing her right hand down her opposite arm from the shoulder to the fingertips. With a flourish, what appeared to be a bone slid out from the open palm of her left hand and she grasped it in her right. A playful tap of the bone shaped wand on her hip and suddenly the plain bleached white bone was adorned with little bat's wings, and tipped with a small flame like a candle.

"All you need to do is channel all of your courage through the wand, boo! The spell must come from your heart, boo!" the bat fairy instructed, taking cover in case she were to really set the plant life ablaze. Cure Witch nodded, waving the wand above her head and forming the shape of a pentagram above her head in flaming tendrils before bringing the sigil down before her, aimed at the monster. Focusing all her energy through the end of the wand, the words seemed to spill from her mouth through no thought of her own, "**Pretty Cure Haunted Hex!"**

The star blasted towards the monster with fiery speed, singeing the impossible blackness with its light. The beast let out one last final hiss as it began to melt away, the dissipating inky void revealing Audrey underneath. As soon as the goopy substance that surrounded her disappeared completely, the white mask popped off her face and fell to the ground as she too collapsed.

In a puff of smoke Sofía de-transformed and ran up to her friend, dropping to her knees and hugging her close. Blue eyes fluttering open, Audrey looked up at her friend in a daze.

"What happened? I thought we were in the car…"

"I'm so sorry Audrey, I was driving a little recklessly and you were stressed about volleyball, I think you might've...blacked out a bit," Sofía said gently, pressing her lips into a thin line as they threatened to quiver and trying to keep the tremor from her voice. Boo landed silently behind her, picking up the white mask on the ground and slipping it under her wing where it disappeared before floating off with a soft smile to Sofía.

"Let's get back in the car, and I'll take you home so you can rest."

Helping her friend to her feet, Sofía guided Audrey back to the car, hoping she didn't notice the fresh dent in the door, or the pink bat squirming to hide under the brunette's book bag. The goth girl didn't say much on the ride home, but she didn't seem distressed either, almost as though a newfound confidence was radiating from within her. As soon as Audrey left the car and trotted up the steps, Sofía's phone buzzed briefly. Peeking at her messages before heading out onto the road again, she saw a text from an unknown number.

_Hey, this is Bing. My address is 7395 Regal Ct. Hope you're having a good night!_

Sofía's heart swelled.


	3. Chapter 3- Prince

Bing ran down the street, dark hair whipping in the wind behind her and darker eyes straining to see what lay ahead of her. It was as though a thick fog had descended upon the town, heavy enough that she couldn't even tell what street she was on anymore. The only thing worse than the fog was the empty echoes of her footsteps on the pavement, and the feeling that something was chasing her. What it was, she didn't know. She couldn't even justify why she felt like something was behind her, other than the way the hair on her arms rose and her knees felt weak.

Whatever it was, it was getting closer, and soon Bing's legs were too tired to continue their pace. She stumbled as she swerved into a hedge, breathing heavily and cradled by the greenery. The mystery assailant, though still unseen, could be felt pausing outside the foliage. The girl held her breath as she felt it lean closer, right up by her ear before letting out a sudden screech.

The alarm clock blared as though it was right in her ear, and the girl sat up suddenly. She waited for her bleary eyes to focus before sliding apathetically out of bed. The black cat that had been curled up beside her lifted his head and meowed indignantly as his sleep was disturbed, and the girl reached over to scratch him behind the ears with a small smile before she began her morning routine.

A quick honk from outside let her know Saanvi was here, and Bing shouted a quick goodbye to her cat as she slunk out the door and into her friend's car. The girl in the driver's seat had a willowy body, but a sharp face and bright eyes. Her silky black hair was parted on the left so her long, sweeping bangs obscured the right side of her face and the scar that crept across it.

"So, tell me about this girl you've got a date with," Saanvi teased in a sing song voice as soon as they pulled out from the driveway.

"H-how did you-"

"Saanvi knows aaaalllll~" she sang, wiggling her fingers mystically.

"Well it's with that girl Sofía, you know the little one? We had chemistry with her last year. I'd partner with her when you were in the hospital."

Saanvi let out a knowing hum, "I see, and how do you feel about it?"

Bing faltered slightly as this question, picking imaginary lint off her dress.

"Nervous. I just worry that...everyone has such high expectations of what I am. Which I guess is a little bit my fault," she laughed weakly. "If I could redo it, I don't know if I'd go for this same aloof prince thing. It's a little flawed."

"I don't think you'll be able to find a personality that'll get you everything you want," Saanvi replied frankly, "It's gonna be pretty hard to find a way to be liked but not approached, and respected with no expectations. Maybe you use this date as a chance to try out just...being you?"

Bing let out a groan, covering her face. "But that's so haaard," she fussed quietly. "I don't know how people will react…"

"You didn't scare me away," Saanvi encouraged with a smile, "Chances are Sofía won't scare easily either. Give it a shot, at least then you can say you tried!"

* * *

Despite all of her inner turmoil, none of it showed as soon as Bing stepped out of the car. Surely no one but Saanvi would have guessed that the prince of Redwood High School was in distress. She was an unusually perceptive girl to begin with, and she and Bing had been friends for much too long for her to believe Bing's untouchable prince persona.

It was nearly lunch time when Audrey leaned forward across her desk and tapped Bing on the back of her shoulder. She turned, brow raised curiously and her charming smile spreading across her face.

"Yes?"

"Hey! Not sure if you had any plans for lunch today, but Sofía and I thought we should invite you to sit with us, if you wanted," the black haired girl said with a friendly smile.

"Oh!" Two invitations in such a short amount of time? She must have been letting her guard down; she was becoming more approachable. "Well I don't see why not, since I have a feeling you and I will be seeing a lot of each other this season," she replied coolly, brushing her long hair over one shoulder. "But only if Saanvi can come, I don't want to leave her in the dust."

Audrey nodded, "Sure, the more the merrier. We'll probably have to find a bigger place to sit…"

With a quick wave of her hand Bing dismissed her concerns, "I can go on ahead and save everyone a table in the courtyard. It won't be a problem."

* * *

"What do you mean we aren't sitting on the wall today?!" Sofía pouted as Audrey motioned for her to hop off their usual lunch place.

"Look! Bing saved us seats," Audrey explained, gesturing out into the courtyard. Sofía's eyes lit up, and she strode eagerly towards the table where the prince sat, sitting down across from her.

"Hi Bing! I didn't think you'd actually sit with us. I figured you usually sat at the popular kids table, and Audrey isn't very good at the art of persuasion."

"Hey," Audrey interjected, slightly offended as she sat down beside Sofía.

"Oooh we have a guest!" Peyton chirped as she walked up to the table, sitting down beside Bing, "Does that make us the new school royalty? Can I be the court chancellor?"

"More like the court jester," Sofía replied, flicking a chickpea at her friend with a mischievous grin. "And Audrey you'd totally be the constable or something like that."

"What would you be?" Audrey asked, raising a quizzical brow at the chicana. Sofía's face reddened, and she looked down at her meal while Bing pretended not to notice her embarrassment.

"I'll be the right-hand advisor to the monarch," Saanvi chimed in as she approached with two bags of food, sitting on the other side of Bing and putting one of the bags in front of her. "I'm Saanvi by the way, I know I've had some classes with you guys but I'm not sure we've ever really been formally introduced, nice to meet you all."

"You're on the volleyball team too right?" Audrey asked between bites of her sub sandwich that seemed a little too big for her mouth.

"Yeah, cocaptain under Bing," Saanvi replied with a sweet smile, "You did really well yesterday. We were both really surprised to see a new girl perform that well. We don't get to make the final judgment call on who gets in but me and Bing will certainly put in a good word on your behalf, right Bibi?"

Now it was Bing's turn to get pink in the face, elbowing Saanvi in the side as she opened up her food. Peyton giggled quietly, "That's a really cute nickname," she complimented, the court advisor grinning.

"Thanks. It helps to bring her down a peg or two," she teased.

"I don't need a nickname! My name is already as short as it could possibly be! Just one syllable!" Bing replied with a rehearsed cadence that made it clear the two had argued about this before.

"Sofía is too long for me too. So I call her Sof, or-"

"Don't say it!" Sofía interrupted, pleading with every inch of her face.

"Toot-a-loo."

Bing's eyes widened in surprise, pressing her lips together to hold back a giggle while Audrey burst out laughing. Sofía lay her head on the table in embarrassment while Saanvi inquired as to the origins of the nickname between mirthful giggles.

"Well the first time the three of us had a sleepover when we were like 12, and we were all having this really profound bonding moment," Peyton began with a bright gleam in her eyes, "And we were all being super emotional and hugging and Sofía lets out the loudest little toot. And we just sat there looking at each other for a minute before everyone starting laughing."

"It's so stupid, it was barely funny when we were 12," Sofía insisted, though she cracked a smile too.

"I won't call you Toot-a-loo," Bing promised mercifully with a quiet laugh, a grateful smile spreading across Sofía's lips.

"Hey, Toot-a-loo! What're you doing at our table?"

Sofía jolted upright, turning to see her little brother and his soccer friends approaching from across the courtyard like a pack of wolves.

"_Your _table?" she scoffed indignantly, Andres nodding and rolling his eyes as though it were obvious.

"Yeah, we've been sitting here since the very first day of school. You can't just swoop in with your gaggle of nerds and steal it."

Sofía stood up, fists clenched though the height disparity between her and her brother made her less than intimidating. If only her parents were here to see this. A prime example of their perfect son being a run-of-the-mill jerk. "Lay off would you? Why are you such an asshole around your friends?" she accused stubbornly. At least at home he was more annoying than mean, it was only around his gaggle of groupies that he turned into a shithead.

"She didn't take the table, I did," Bing said coolly, standing up as well and locking eyes with the boy. "And we got here first so it looks like you all are going to have to find someplace else to sit." Whereas Sofía had sibling rivalry working against her, Bing figured the boy wouldn't be quite so brazen with a stranger.

"Yo we might as well find someplace else, she might sit on us," one of the other boys mock-whispered to Andres, who nodded and promptly turned around and lead the group out of the courtyard. Sofía's eyes widened and her face paled at the comment, turning around to look at Bing who seemed unfazed by the insult as she sat back down and continued eating.

"I'm so sorry Bing, my brother and his friends turn into assholes when they get together," Sofía apologized, though Bing simply shrugged as she chewed.

"It's nothing I haven't heard before."

"That doesn't make it okay though. Just because you can take it doesn't mean you should have to. No one should have to be strong all the time," Sofía said gently, taking her own seat again and picking half-heartedly at the rest of her lunch.

* * *

As the bell rang, everyone went their separate ways. Bing found herself ditching class, her terminal senioritis quite pervasive despite it only being the first week of school. She just needed some time to be alone. After all, pretending to be someone else proved to be pretty draining. Almost as much as pretending not to be hurt. Maybe once volleyball season was over she should try out for the next play, as she was becoming quite the talented actress.

_Just because you can take it doesn't mean you should have to. No one should have to be strong all the time._

The words chimed softly in the back of her mind. Generally, those who were admirers of the volleyball prince would chew out any perpetrators of negative remarks, and insist that she didn't feel bad because they weren't worth her time. They were all well-intentioned, sure, but the pressure to live up to these claims of her impervious heart was draining. She had grown tired of other people deciding how she felt. It wasn't until Sofía that anyone had ever validated her own feelings...let her be hurt...treated her like a person rather than an idol. Perhaps this prince persona was even more flawed than she thought.

Having been at Redwood for four years meant Bing knew all the ins and outs of the school, and the best places to set up camp when she didn't want to be disturbed. At the back of the building was an unsuspecting door that lead to another small hallway, a library storeroom at the end of the hidden hall. A comfortable chair sat in the back corner of the room, surrounded by books haphazardly tossed in with no particular order in mind.

The abandoned books were dusty and some in extremely poor condition, having been pulled from the shelves when newer copies came in. Bing flipped on the light, though the bulbs only gave off a faint glow, probably needing to be changed. It didn't seem like anyone ever came here enough to notice. She didn't mind, however, as the faint light was quaint. It was enough to read in, but faint enough that she could take a nap if she wanted without sealing herself away in a pitch black, windowless cavern.

With a heavy sigh she collapsed into the old chair, which was likely broken considering how far into it she sank. The brown-eyed girl grabbed the book atop a stack beside the chair, flipping through until she found her dog ear and tossing her legs in a rather unladylike fashion over the back of the chair. Most of the book arrangement was likely Bing's doing by this point, as she moved books into different stacks as she read them or deemed them uninteresting.

As much as she hated school, she did enjoy a good book. They were much easier to get through when there weren't any expectations, and in the privacy of her little sanctuary she was quite the avid reader. Bing didn't discriminate between nonfiction and novels, sometimes switching from a book on South African history that was missing a few pages, to a sci-fi novel with a coffee-stained cover.

The remainder of the school day was spent lost in a fantasy realm, following adventurers fighting the forces of evil. It was an exciting detour from mundane reality, and when the bell rang the volleyball prince of Redwood was feeling much better. Oddly enough, however, the intrepid adventurer's spunky sidekick had begun to look, in her mind's eye, an awful lot like the vertically challenged chicana she had eaten lunch with. Perhaps her comment had made a profound subconscious impact. Or perhaps she was a little more nervous, or excited, for this outing than she initially anticipated.

Bing emerged from the dimly lit room when the final bell rang, blinking her eyes to readjust to the light outside. Saanvi was waiting for her by the parking lot, a tall girl waiting beside her. She was fairly gaunt looking, makeup smeared around grey eyes like she had slept in it, and bags like she hadn't slept at all. Bing recognized this girl as Colette, a soft-spoken girl with whom she shared an English class.

"H-hi. Um...I noticed you weren't in English today," the girl said quietly, holding her book bag in front of her like a shield.

Bing smiled gently, "Yeah, I wasn't feeling it today. Did I miss something important?"

"Oh, no. But you can have my notes if you want!" she offered, beginning to unzip her bag before Bing held up a hand for her to stop.

"It's fine. I don't need it."

"Oh, o-okay. Well um, I was wondering if maybe I could interview you for the school newspaper about...um...the new volleyball season?"

"Sure, I don't see why not," Bing replied warmly, "you should invite Saanvi too, since she's my co-captain," she suggested, her friend smiling brightly.

"That'd be cool, you can do a double feature on us," Saanvi cheered, "Maybe I'll even reveal something juicy like my favorite color, or all the hot goss on Bing's personal life."

Bing snorted, hitting her friend's arm playfully, "Yeah, sure. But anyway, just give me a time and I'll let you know if I can make it."

"Maybe this Saturday, after the new roster is out?" Colette suggested.

"Ah, I know that won't work I've got plans this Saturday. Maybe Sunday though."

Even just thinking about the date again made her heart race a little faster. Colette frowned, digging a worn planner that was covered in dog pictures from her bag. Flipping through the tattered pages, her weary eyes glanced over her schedule.

"I don't know about Sunday...what time are your plans for on Saturday? Maybe we can meet before like lunchtime?"

"It's a lunch date I have planned I'm afraid. We can just do it after school next week sometime though, don't worry," Bing said cheerfully.

"Oh...okay I'll...I'll talk to you about it next week then. Thank you for helping me find her, Saanvi."

"No problem, have a nice evening!" Saanvi cheered, waving as the girl shuffled off. As soon as she was far enough away, the black haired girl turned back to Bing with a sly side-eye, "Looks like someone's in high demand this week." Bing narrowed her eyes with menace, but soon cracked a smile.

* * *

The evening went by like a typical one in the Morgan household. Her parents came home late, and the three of them ate a quiet, late-night dinner. Afterwards her parents went to their respective home offices, and Bing retreated to her basement abode, taking a long shower and contemplating the universe for a while. Every so often she would catch her mind drifting listlessly back to thoughts of the weekend, and each time she realized this she would feel her face flush.

Wrapping herself up in her towel she took a pause to enjoy the steamy bathroom before opening the door to brave the cool of the basement and scurry over to her room. As per usual, her cat Poe lay on her bed, looking up and offering a soft chirp in greeting. After changing into pajamas, Bing lay in bed beside the black cat and pulled the book off her nightstand to finish another chapter. Despite her best efforts, every few paragraphs the girl's mind began to wander again and she eventually shut the book with a sigh, rolling over to grab her phone in one hand and pet Poe with the other.

Finding the number for the girl who had taken up residence in her mind since lunch, she tapped out a quick message, and after debating for a good five minutes whether including a smilie was too much or not, she sent the text.

_Thank you for today. I can't wait for this weekend :)_


	4. Chapter 4- Bacon

Rolling to a stop in Bing's driveway Saturday morning was more than enough to get the jitters going. Sofía had changed her outfit at least three times, sending photos to Audrey and Peyton for approval each time she second guessed herself. She wanted to look cute, but not like she was trying too hard. Effortlessly adorable. The look Sofía settled on was a loose green summery top, distressed denim shorts with a dainty swirl pattern on the back pockets, old brown sandals that had been long loved, and her favorite feathered earrings. If anyone asked, she was going for boho chic.

Putting on makeup was a bit of a struggle, since she didn't usually wear any to school and wasn't particularly adept at the application process. Sofía patted on a few different eyeshadows, only to rub them away again and again until her skin began to look red. With a sigh of defeat, she covered it up with some foundation, slapped on some mascara and called it good. What she lacked in makeup finesse, however, she made up for with her perfectly casual fishtail braid that she laid neatly over her right shoulder.

She fiddled with the braid now as she sat waiting in the car, trying to decide what best to do. Should she just text Bing and let her know she was here? Should she knock on the door? Ring the doorbell? What if her parents were sleeping in? Deciding it was the polite thing to do, she exited the rumbling car and rapped hesitantly on the door.

Sofía swallowed hard, realizing she didn't know the names of either of Bing's parents. Silently praying they wouldn't come to the door, her hands returned to her braid again, tugging nervously. Her prayers were answered as the door slowly opened, and Bing stepped out onto the porch, shooing back Poe who seemed eager to make a run for the outdoors.

The volleyball prince was sporting cuffed navy shorts and a grey blouse dotted with white polka dots. It wasn't until Sofía laid eyes on her then that she realized she had never seen the girl outside of either her school or volleyball uniforms.

"You look great!" the smaller girl complimented with a sincere smile, resisting the urge to stare as she turned back towards the car. "The ol' clunker awaits!" Trotting ahead she opened up the passenger side door before hopping back into the driver's seat, the prince sitting down gently beside her.

"Is there anything in particular you like? Or don't like?" Sofía inquired as she pulled out from the house. "If not I was thinking we could go to that cute little brunch place that just opened up off Walnut Street."

"Anything is fine with me; that sounds good," Bing said softly, fidgeting slightly in her seat and pulling a wallet out from her back pocket to place it in her lap.

"Woah hey, none of that!" Sofía cried, pointing at the offending wallet. "I asked you for a lunch date so I can pay for it! Put that nonsense away." Bing blushed a little, though she offered a small smile at the gesture.

"Thanks, that's kind of you."

The restaurant wasn't far, and soon the two found themselves seated in a cozy little nook of the brunch establishment. Sofía slung her bag over the back of her chair and clutched her menu with a ravenous gleam in her eye, while Bing peered curiously over the offerings.

"Is there anything here you recommend?" she inquired, Sofía slapping her menu down onto the table excitedly.

"Well, they're known for their French toast so if you don't know what to do definitely try that. I know my mom really likes the omelette with all the vegetables in it...I think my brother and my dad both get the pancakes, and I really like the Belgian waffles so I'm going to get some of that."

"_Bacon~"_

A hoarse sounding whisper passed by the two, and each girl looked around to try and spot the origin of the sound.

"Did you hear someone say 'bacon?'" Bing asked, furrowing her brow in confusion.

"Yeah...I think so," Sofía confirmed, peering uneasily over her shoulder.

"_Baaaaaacooooon~"_

That time it sent a shiver up Sofía's spine.

"It sounds like it's coming from your direction, maybe behind you?" Bing offered uncertainly, looking around the room they were seated in as though some pig-loving ghost might be seen salivating off in a corner. Sofía looked behind her, spying an elderly couple who weren't talking much, and neither of which had a plate of bacon in front of them. The slightest of movements caught her eye, and she peered down into her bag where a certain bat fairy lay, eyes glistening as she looked up at the girl and pointed hungrily to her gaping mouth.

"Hi, what can I get for you ladies this morning?"

Sofía sat bolt upright when she heard the waitress at their table, forcing a wide smile that made Bing flash a look of concern to the girl.

"Hi! Yes I'll have the Belgian waffles and an orange juice please!" Sofía said, sounding forcefully chipper.

"Alright, and any sides with that?"

"_Baaaacoooon~"_

"Okay, waffles and a side of bacon. And for you?"

Bing blinked, looking from the waitress to her date, and back to the waitress again. "Uhh, I think I'll try the French toast please, with some iced tea."

"Will do, any sides for you?"

"_Baaaaacooooon~"_

"Okay I've got one order of the waffles, one of the french toast, and two sides of bacon. I'll be right out with your drinks," the waitress said cheerfully, collecting the menus and leaving the two girls to stare blankly at one another, Sofía still forcing a smile.

"Was that _you_ making that noise?" Bing inquired, looking bewildered.

"Oh, ahaha yeah, sorry I just thought it was funny. Sorry for pranking you!"

"...I don't really want any bacon, so do you want to eat both orders?"

"Oh I uh, I don't eat bacon. I'm a vegetarian."

Bing stared blankly at the girl.

"What?"

"I don't eat meat, I just uh, really like the smell! I think it really sets the mood."

"The mood? _Bacon_._..?_"

"The mood for breakfast I mean! Not _the_ mood, the breakfast mood!" Sofía floundered, laughing nervously. "But enough about me tell me about you! I feel like everyone knows you but no one really knows all that much about you! What're your favorite past times, what do you wanna do after graduation, what are your favorite smells?"

Bing's eyes twinkled with amusement as the waitress returned to set down their drinks. She sipped at her iced tea for a moment, mulling over the questions. How much, or how little, was she supposed to give out on a first date anyway? Saanvi's comment from earlier in the week chimed in her ears.

_Use this date as a chance to try out just being you._

The prince set down her glass and swallowed hard, clearing her throat before she spoke. "Well, I'd say my favorite past time outside of the obvious volleyball would be reading," she admitted shyly. "I also have a cat...who is kinda like my child, and I really like playing with him." Sofía beamed, and nodded, encouraging her to continue. "After graduation I dunno what I'm going to do yet...I hope I can get a sports scholarship somewhere or something...I haven't thought much about it. And I must have a worse nose than you because no particular smell 'puts me in the mood' like you," she added, teasing at the end. "What about you?"

Sofía blushed a little at the jab towards her awkward cover for the bat fairy's insatiable hunger, but quickly brushed it off. "Me? Well let's see...I'm really passionate about human rights and social justice stuff, I have a blog and I'm also the president of the Spectrum club at school! We have meetings on the last Monday of every month, if you ever wanted to come! Maybe when your season is over?" she suggested hopefully. The girl decided not to bring up her new hobby of monster hunting; that was more of a third date kind of confession. "As far as post-graduation plans, I think I'd like to spend some time volunteering, but there's a women's studies program I'm really interested in so if I get accepted to that school I'd probably do that too."

"Wow, you seem to have it all figured out," Bing murmured, raising her brows in what Sofía hoped was an expression of impression rather than sarcasm.

"Ah, not really. I guess I just get a little nervous when I don't have a plan. I mean, even my brother knows what school he's shooting for and he's only a Freshman," she murmured, somewhat bitterly, "So I at least need to keep up with him."

Bing shrugged, taking another sip of her tea. "I don't think you need to have all the answers right away. You can just take some things as they come, and see where they lead you, you know?"

"Yeah, I suppose so. I guess I just get a little nervous that I go unnoticed next to my brother," Sofía admitted, blushing suddenly. "Sorry that was a little personal," she apologized, attempting to laugh it off.

Twirling her straw in her tea, Bing shook her head. "Don't worry about it, that wasn't too personal. I've got the opposite problem; I'm an only child so all eyes are on me, for better or for worse. And for what it's worth, I like you a lot better than I like this supposedly perfect brother of yours."

"Oh, yeah I'm still really sorry about him and his buddies. Individually I'm sure they're all good kids but...it's like they all pressure each other to be more and more of an ass when they're together," she grumbled. "I wish I was an only child."

"I can understand that. I guess I just wish there was someone else around my house to help shoulder the weight of all my parents' expectations. It's a lot for just one person," Bing sighed softly. "Sometimes I wonder…" Sofía leaned in intently, hanging on every word, but the prince simply shook her head. "Nevermind. That's something for a later date."

"So there's going to be another date?" Sofía asked, raising a brow and cracking a smile before giggling a bit to herself. "I'm only kidding, don't worry."

Bing laughed as well, "I guess that depends on how you play your cards today."

The waitress came by again with their meals, including two plates of bacon which she slid in front of Sofía. The vegetarian stared at the fragrant meat, forcing a smile as the waitress strode away.

"How's your mood-setting bacon look?" Bing teased, drizzling her french toast in maple syrup. Sofía laughed nervously, licking her lips just for show.

"It looks...great! In fact, I think I want to savor the smell of it all day so…" In one swift movement the girl gathered up the two plates and dumped both of their contents into her backpack where the fairy lay inconspicuously, paws outstretched as her treat fell from the heavens. Bing froze and stared wide-eyed and dumbfounded at the girl, maple syrup pouring continuously out until her plate was nearly saturated with the stuff. Finally breaking from her trance she sat up, putting the now nearly empty bottle aside.

"Um, isn't your bag going to get really greasy?" she asked with a look of genuine concern for the well being of both the bag and her date.

Sofía just shrugged. "I don't care, it's an old bag," she said dismissively, beginning to cut up her waffles into bites that were probably still too big for her to eat gracefully. "So, are you going to the carnival this week?"

Bing shook her head, "No, Saanvi isn't a big fan of carnivals and my parents aren't the type to do that sort of thing so I never go. I don't really mind, though." She felt as though ignorance was bliss in that regard. Having never been to events like that might've seemed sad to others, but considering it was all she had known Bing didn't feel very strongly about it. It was clear Sofía did however, as her eyes widened in shock at the news and she set down her fork.

"Whaaat? Well are you doing anything after this? We could extend our date out a little, if you want to I mean."

"That's sweet of you to offer." An earnest smile pulled up at her lips. "Why not? You'll have to show me all the best things to do."

* * *

The summer carnival came to town every August. It wasn't anything spectacular, but it was well known enough that people came from neighboring towns to have some fun. Of course, Saturday was always the busiest day, and finding parking proved to be quite the endeavor. Bing clutched the door handle tightly as her date engaged her aggressive driving mode, whipping around the roped off parking area until she spotted a man and his son on their way back to their car. After slowly stalking them back to their car and quickly flagging the spot with her blinker, the two finally got out of the car and strode towards the entrance. Bing insisted on paying for her own ticket, and looked over with concern when she noticed the bag check ahead of them.

"Uh oh, it says you're not allowed to bring in any outside food. What are you gonna do about your bacon?"

With a thoughtful hum, Sofía swung her bag around to her front gently and unzipped it to peek inside. As she thought, Boo had eaten all of the food dropped down for her, and now lay with greasy paws on her stomach, sleeping soundly. "I uh, I guess I'll go throw it out now," she announced, strutting to the nearest trashcan and pretending to dump out the long since eaten bacon. "All better!"

At the bag check, Bing walked through uninspected as she was bagless, while Sofía stopped to show off the contents of her bag to the man. "It smells like you've got food in here," he noted, shining a flashlight inside.

"Ah, yeah but I threw it all out, no contraband in there I promise!" Sofía laughed, though her blood ran cold when he pulled out Boo, who was now awake and stiff with fright.

"This is a really cute doll! My daughter loves stuff like this. It even has working joints and everything, wow. Where did you get it?"

Sofía shook her head violently, "N-no it's just a-uh. A stuffed animal...that my mom made me! You can't buy it anywhere. But it's very old, can you put it back in gently please?" She was relieved when the man did just that, and passed her bag back to her with a smile. Breathing a deep sigh, she put the bag back over her shoulders, hearing Boo whisper bitterly from inside "_I'm not old, boo!"_.

"Everything okay?" Bing asked curiously, the chicana dismissing her concerns with a flippant wave of her hand.

"Not a problem! Thanks for coming with me, I'm so pumped!" The girl clapped her hands excitedly, a regular kid in a candy shop as they were finally in the throes of the carnival. "Promise you'll go on the tilt-a-whirl with me? We can wait until our food settles a bit first though." Bing laughed, nodding a solemn promise to the ecstatic girl. "Oh and there's a giant bounce house, I wonder if we're too old to go in it."

Running on ahead to ask about the age limit, Sofía waved her date on over and took off her shoes excitedly. "They said it's slow right now, so we can go on! I love these things. They should have them for adults, I swear people in high school and college would still go on these all the time! Maybe I should start a business." It wasn't unusual for the entrepreneurial spirit to take hold of her, and somewhere in the recesses of her mind there were thousands of different ideas she claimed would make a great business.

The enthusiasm was infectious as Bing found herself getting excited as she followed suit and took off her shoes, crawling inside the bounce house behind her companion. "So you just jump?" she asked, a little embarrassed to admit she didn't quite understand the point.

"Have you never been in a bounce house before?!" Sofía cried, aghast. "You just jump, or you can fall on your ass and bounce around that way, or whatever you want! It's basically just a big enclosed trampoline!" She grabbed hold of the stationary girl's hands and began to hop around with a wild laugh. It wasn't quite as exhilarating and leaping around as a pretty cure, but it sure was a hell of a lot less stressful.

The laughter was as infectious as her enthusiasm, and soon Bing couldn't hold back her own giggles. It seemed as though layers of inhibition flaked off with each bounce, and she was genuinely disappointed when they were asked to leave as some kids approached.

"How about the ferris wheel?" Sofía proposed as she strapped her sandals back on. The two rode the leisurely ride, snapping photos of the town from the top, and trotted off to the next. They rode carousels, teacups, and swings, Bing even tried her hand at the Test Your Strength game, winning a stuffed bear that she gave to Sofía, much to the girl's delight.

Tucking the bear into her backpack with Boo, the chicana spied her favorite ride a short distance away. "Can we do the tilt-a-whirl next?" Sofía suggested, "If you're okay with those kinds of rides, that is."

"Sure. I'm not afraid of stuff like that," Bing agreed, walking with the smaller girl towards the spinning contraption. It was clear one of the boys in line was afraid, however, as the girl he was with goaded him into getting on.

"Come on, it's fun just get over it!" she teased, pushing the worried looking boy ahead of her once it was their turn. Sofía frowned, letting Bing pass ahead of her to board the ride while she set her backpack down on the side.

"_Psst."_

The noise made her look down, pink eyes gleaming intently back at her from inside the bag. "I'm sensing something from Frighton is nearby, keep an eye out okay, boo?"

Sofía nodded, "Of course, I'll keep a lookout for anything weird, but I'm also trying to have fun, okay?" The bat nodded, sinking back down into the depths of the bag as the girl boarded the ride beside her date. "Have you ever been on one of these?" Bing shook her head. "They're really fun, the platform just spins and the car spins too, it's wild. It's fun to let your head flop around!"

With a rumble the motors of the ride began to whir, and the ride slowly began to rotate. "Just let yourself go all loosey goosey, it's great!" Sofía instructed, wiggling with excitement in her seat. As they began to pick up speed, an odd metallic clang emanated from somewhere near the center platform. Once their car spun around to face inward, Sofía stared wide-eyed at the thing that crouched in the middle of the spinning ride. The nervous boy from earlier let out a cry as the Dread turned its featureless face to him and began to walk effortlessly across the twirling platform towards his car, seemingly drawn to him by his fear.

"Look out!" Sofía cried, struggling to keep an eye on the monster and the boy as their car continued to rotate.

"What's wrong?" Bing asked worriedly, craning her neck to try to see what her companion was so fixated on.

No sooner had she asked than another scream split the air, this one carrying with it the words:

_"I'M SCARED!"_


	5. Chapter 5- Carnival

A metallic screech punctuated the end of the boy's scream, and like a shadow the Dread breezed past the tilt-a-whirl car where the two girls sat as Sofía leaned dangerously far out to see. It was just as she feared. Sure enough, an Anxoid was seated beside a terrified looking girl, though it quickly sprouted arms and threw itself from the car, smashing its large fists into the center of the ride. The jolt made everyone cry out as they lurched in their cars, and Bing instinctively threw out her arms to grab Sofía and pull her back into her seat, lest she be ejected from the ride.

"_HURRY PRECURE!"_

The fairy's voice cut through the commotion, and Sofía bit her lip. There was no way she could jump onto the still-moving platform without first transforming...but if she transformed right in front of Bing...what would she think of her then? But, that boy needed her help…this was her duty. Gently, she lifted the bigger girl's strong hands off of her, looking at her solemnly.

"There's something I have to do...I promise I'll explain later," Sofía said seriously, Bing's eyes wild and confused.

"Wh-what? What is happening? What do you mean?"

Sofía didn't have time to answer, and instead threw out her hand where the shimmering Smoke Bon-bomb appeared. "I'm so sorry," she murmured solemnly before standing up in the car, bracing herself on the side. Bing attempted to pull her back down but she leapt from the car, throwing the glimmering candy to the ground as she shouted.

"**Nightmares, nevermore! Trick-or-treat transformation!" **

The blinding flash as the smoke bomb went off forced Bing to shield her eyes. What the hell had Sofía done? When she finally gathered the bravery to pull her hands away, a girl with long purple pigtails and a witch's hat stood on the center of the platform, knees bent and ready for action.

"**A mischievous smile on a moonlit night, Cure Witch!"**

Immediately, Witch launched herself at the monster and tackled it off the ride. It would be easier than trying to handle the monster on the chaotic spinning platform at least. People screamed as the two came careening into the ground beside the tilt-a-whirl, and Witch looked back over her shoulder at the ride operator.

"Stop the ride and get everyone to safety now! I'll take care of this."

The operator did just that, slamming on the emergency stop and shouting at everyone to exit quickly and follow him as he dashed off away from the strange girl and the even stranger monster. Bing hesitated, falling to the back of the frantically fleeing crowd as she looked back at the girl struggling against the shadowy beast. She looked different, that much was certain, but it was unmistakably Sofía. The prince had seen her date leap out of their car and then...she became this?

Witch struggled against the monster as she tried attacking in a downward fashion. Though everyone around them poured like ants through the alleys of the carnival as they attempted to escape, the purple cure didn't want to risk knocking the Anxoid into anyone. This was the first time she had dealt with one in such a public area, and the pressure was on.

Leaping into the air, she interlaced her fingers and brought her hands down like a club on the top of the Anxoid's head. It let out a strangled hiss as it was knocked into the ground, and Witch landed deftly a few feet away.

Boo flew out from the discarded backpack and landed on the brim of Witch's hat with a look of concern paling her furry face. "I've got a bad feeling about this one, boo."

"That's why I'm gonna get rid of it as fast as I can!" Witch said through gritted teeth, determination palpable in her voice. Touching her fingertips to her shoulder, she glided her hand down her left arm and with a flourish produced the bonewick wand from the palm of her left hand. As she had done previously, the purple cure held the flaming wand aloft and etched a five pointed star in fire above her head. Bringing the pentagram down before her, eyes locked on the Anxoid, she cried, "**Pretty Cure Haunted Hex!"**

The fiery spell blasted towards the monster, but just before it made contact the monster's shadowy arms began spinning around its torso rapidly. The gust that the rapid rotation created dissipated the sigil before it could make contact, and the Anxoid hissed an inhuman "Exxxxx" as it glided swiftly towards the pretty cure.

"It wasn't weak enough!" Boo cried, flying from Witch's hat, "I'll try to distract it and slow it down, boo!" The little bat attempted to maneuver her way through the gust towards the mask on the beast's face but the rapidly spinning hands, much like the tilt-a-whirl, knocked the fairy out of the air with ease.

"Boo!" Witch cried, running over to where her fairy companion had hit the ground and scooping her up. "Are you okay?!"

"Look out, boo!"

A quick glance over her shoulder revealed the monster had advanced upon the purple cure quicker than she had expected, its arms still furiously whipping in a circle around it. She wrapped the bat fairy protectively in her arms, bracing for impact when suddenly the beast fell backward with a screech and a loud crack. Looking up in search of what had knocked back the monster, much to her dismay Witch's violet eyes fell upon Bing who stood on one of the stalls defiantly with a pile of skee ball ammunition at her feet. She lobbed another of the heavy plastic balls at the Anxoid as it stumbled back, throwing from above allowing her to avoid the rotating arms.

With a hiss the monster changed direction, and glided like a shadow with frightening speed towards the assailant, long arms still awhir.

"Bing no!" Witch cried in desperation, getting to her feet and running towards the girl. "Look out!"

The prince stared defiantly at the beast that charged her, throwing another skee ball at the white mask. "Don't worry about me! I'm not afraid!"

Time seemed to slow as the words spilled from her mouth, igniting a dazzling light before her. Boo and Witch both gasped audibly as they saw the shimmering foil wrapped candy before the girl on the skee ball stand.

"Listen to me, boo! You have been chosen as a Pretty Cure warrior! Throw that on the ground and shout 'nightmares nevermore, trick-or-treat transformation'!" the bat fairy instructed loudly as the monster approached. As ridiculous as it sounded, nothing about the situation made any sense, and Bing didn't have time to second guess her instruction. She enclosed the iridescent object in her hand with resolve, and cried the incantation she was given.

"**Nightmares nevermore, trick-or-treat transformation!"**

Orange smoke billowed from the bon-bomb as it made contact with the ground, and Bing felt herself being lifted into the air inside the column of smoke. Sparkles danced about as the girl felt her clothes burst away from her in a puff of glitter, her skin aglow with ethereal light. What looked like green vines began to snake their way across her torso in a spiderweb pattern until they too burst into light and suddenly a web print leotard hugged her body. Leafy vines wrapped around her arms, creating sleeves and fingerless gloves. Next came her legs, the vines giving way to black socks that reached her thighs, then her torso where a little grey corset popped into place. Little glowing pumpkins with jack-o-lanturn faces danced around her, two encasing her feet. With two aggressive kicks they broke apart, revealing grey ankle booties with orange toes.

The girl began to fall, crashing into a larger jack-o-lanturn that slid up her legs and around her hips, becoming a full, bubble skirt with another glittery flash. Reaching above her head another smiling pumpkin appeared between her hands, and the girl smirked as she pulled it down over her head. She gave it a good spin, and when she stopped the jack-o-lanturn and pulled it from her head, her hair was dyed a vibrant orange and done up in two round buns on either side of her head.

As soon as she let go of the pumpkin she landed back on the ground with renewed vigor, pulling a hand back as though she were about to spike a volleyball.

"**A warm smile on an autumn night, Cure Pumpkin!"**

Witch was unable to even blink, staring in awe as the girl reappeared in an outfit not dissimilar to her own. "B-Bing is a Pretty Cure?!" The anxoid didn't seem to care about this revelation as it swung its arms out to the platform she had been standing on, smashing it to smithereens. Pumpkin was already in the air by the time it made impact, eyes narrowed in determination. To an outside observer, it seemed she was already a natural at this whole superhero thing. In reality, her mind was racing.

'_It's just a bouncy house it's just a bouncy house' _she thought repeatedly, landing with a stomp on the back of the monster. "Hey Witch, Batty! How do I get a weapon?"

"Search your heart for courage and the answer will come to you, boo!" the fairy exclaimed with glee, flying off towards Pumpkin. The orange cure took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart and focus her mind. Placing both hands over her heart, she tried to find her courage as instructed, and pulling her hands away produced a bonewick wand that she pulled from her chest and brandished defiantly.

"Hey that's not so bad!" she laughed, gripping it in both hands like a bat. "Let's test it out! **Pretty Cure Jack-o-Jynx!**" The flame at the end of her wand suddenly grew into a large, fiery pumpkin shape that the girl launched with vigor at the monster. The fire was dazzling and more iridescent than any real flame, belying its magical properties. With a sizzle the fireball burst into a flurry of glitter as it made contact with the anxoid. It crumpled with an angry hiss and Pumpkin jumped beside Witch with an encouraging smile. "Why don't you try your spell now?"

Witch grinned and nodded enthusiastically. Again the purple cure raised her wand aloft and recited her incantation, "**Pretty Cure Haunted Hex!" **This time, the five pointed sigil collided with the weakened monster, burning away the blackness. Just as it had with Audrey, the shadow that encased the boy began to melt off in goopy globs until it had all soaked into the earth, and the white mask popped off his face and clattered to the ground. Before he could open his eyes and collect himself, Boo swooped down to collect the mask, sending it away with a clap of her paws.

The two girls de-transformed in a flash and ran to the boy's side, helping the disoriented teen sit up. "Where...am I?"

"You're at the carnival, there was an accident on the ride and you blacked out," Sofía said gently, figuring omitting a little bit of the truth wouldn't hurt anyone. But there were always the others to worry about... With the commotion gone people began to wander back, murmuring about the malfunctioning ride, staff conversing with one another about getting a maintenance team in to check it out and do repairs.

"...none of them remember?" Bing asked in a hushed whisper, Sofía's eyes widening as she listened to the quiet murmurs.

"I guess not."

The girl that had been on the ride with the nervous boy ran to his side, giving him a tight hug. "Oh Chris, I was so worried about you, I didn't know where you went! I'm sorry, I shouldn't have dragged you onto the ride..."

Chris let out a soft sigh. "Yeah...I was scared of the ride...but I was also scared to tell you no."

The girls eyes watered up, and she hugged the boy tighter. "I'm so sorry...that must've been so hard for you to say, but I needed to hear that. Really, thank you for being brave enough to tell me."

Sofía ran up to the damaged ride and grabbed her backpack, Boo sliding deftly inside unnoticed.

"Wanna go? I think we have a lot to talk about…"

* * *

The carnival grounds weren't too far from Sofía's home, and as soon as they arrived the two girls climbed the stairs to her bedroom. Andres was sitting in the living room, eying the pair as they ascended.

"Oh, hey! Wait! I wanted to say I'm sorry about what my buddy said the other day. He can be a bit of a dick sometimes," the younger boy called after Bing.

The girl peered over her shoulder for a moment, sizing him up briefly and facing forward again. "By the sounds of it, so can you. I accept your apology but it'd mean more coming from him and not a mouthpiece." Sofía audibly snorted and Andres stared on after the two as they rounded the corner and shut the door to the bedroom behind them.

"Good one, I don't think anyone's ever actually told him off before besides me," Sofía complimented, pulling out her desk chair and gesturing for her date to sit across from her on the bed.

Bing shrugged, "At least he apologized. But I'm less concerned about a bunch of shithead freshmen and more worried about big shadow monsters and turning into a pumpkin."

With a laugh, Sofía unzipped her backpack and let out the little bat fairy who floated over to sit on the footboard of the bed. "Hopefully she can help explain, to be honest I haven't really got much of an idea about what's happening either."

Boo smiled at the new girl, waving a little paw. "I'll do my best, boo! I am a fairy and my name is Boo, it's my job to find all the pretty cure like you and help put a stop to Frighton!"

"Alright...what is a pretty cure?"

"A magical warrior, boo!"

"Why was I chosen?"

"Your courageous heart, boo!"

"And Frighton is...?"

"Oh I know this one!" Sofía interjected, "That's the world of fear, right?" Boo nodded sagely and Sofía beamed with pride.

"Where is it?"

"It's in another dimension, boo. It exists in a tangential reality to this world."

Sofía blinked. "What does that even mean?"

"It means…" Boo scrunched her face up as she tried to find a way to relate the concept to humans who never before considered the existence of other worlds. "It means even though you can't see it, it's very close to your world boo."

"Is that where you come from?" Bing asked curiously, considering she had never seen anything like the mauve talking bat.

The fairy put her head in her paws, rubbing her temples. "I...I don't know, boo. I don't think so, because I know my job is to help stop it. But...I'm also not affected by them, they don't scare me, boo. I just can't remember, I was asleep for so long that-"

Gently, the prince scooped up the little bat in her hands, petting her head. "It's okay. I mean...even if you were from there you're helping us. And what you do matters more than where you came from, right?" Boo's bottom lip began to wibble, and she quickly hid her face behind heart-dotted wings and buried herself in Bing's lap.

"Do we know what Frighton wants?"

Sofía shook her head. "No, but there was someone I had wanted to talk to...when I first transformed there was a little girl there who saw her nanny get attacked. And somehow mid-fight the anxoid, the big monster we saw today, disappeared. I wanted to see if anything different happened when that girl was attacked, because so far she's the only one that's disappeared."

Idle hands still stroked the fairy's plush fur as Bing nodded thoughtfully, mulling over all the new information. "Do we know how all the monsters are getting from Frighton to Earth?" Sofía was about to respond negatively when Boo suddenly perked her head up.

"I have an idea of where they're coming from, boo!"

"Maybe we should check it out?"

* * *

It was quite a trek on foot to get to the woods that Boo had described. Bing stepped off the sidewalk cautiously, fishing the little glimmering candy she received out from her pocket. "And we always transform with these?"

Sofía nodded, "Don't worry too much about it! You did great today, you're a real natural!"

The prince laughed weakly, though the reassurance made her smile, and she stood a little straighter and stepped towards the forest on sure feet.

"Would you mind if I held your hand?"

Bing jumped slightly at the question, her newfound confidence faltering slightly as she wrung her hands together nervously. "Umm, I'm not sure yet. Sorry."

If she was disappointed, Sofía didn't show it as she smiled at the girl, "No need to be sorry! That's why I asked!"

A faint breeze ruffled the leaves on the trees, as though they shuddered at the presence of the three that ventured into the depths of the forest. Sofía wished she had had the foresight to change her shoes to a close-toed pair as the shrubbery they walked through scribbled meaningless notes on the tops of her feet and across her ankles. She was never much of an outdoorsman, but since becoming a Pretty Cure she always found herself trudging through the underbrush or in places she ought not be.

"What exactly are we looking for?" she called out to Boo who flew on ahead of the girls.

"We'll know when we see it, boo. I know it's around here somewhere…"

"Is it a scary-ass tree?" Bing inquired.

"How did you know, boo?"

"Because I see one right over there. And if I were going to go to the world of fear I'd guess that tree would be my best bet." The prince pointed off to the right and the two turned to follow her gesture.

"That's it! Good job, boo!" the bat cried, flying off towards the tree.

The underbrush seemed cleared out around it, and even though it was only mid-summer the grass seemed like it was on its way out already. The tree itself was ashen grey and not quite as big as one might expect a portal to another world to be. In fact, it didn't seem particularly imposing, but unmistakably out of place amongst the other trees. The trunk was twisted and concave as though it had taken a punch to the gut, and it barely held any leaves along its spindly branches.

"The cave I woke up in is around here somewhere too, boo," the bat murmured, floating around the tree to try to find it. "Oh! This must be it, boo!"

The girls walked up beside their fairy curiously looking down at the small crack in the ground that Boo claimed was a cave. It seemed to be nothing more than a small fissure, much less a cave, and the two shared an incredulous look between them.

"This is a cave? I hope that's not the portal, no one will be able to fit in there besides you," Sofia murmured, furrowing her brow.

"It is a cave, boo!" the fairy insisted, sticking her head in and looking around. "Listen, boo!"

Her voice echoed faintly beneath the ground and Bing frowned a little, unsettled that a chunk of the forest was completely hollow underneath. Instead of looking down into the crack any longer she turned her attention back to the tree, running a hand across the scabby bark.

"Be careful, boo!" the fairy warned as she pulled her head back above ground. "The tree is the portal, if I remember correctly, boo! The cave was just where I woke up."

"How do you use it? There don't seem to be any openings," Bing observed, circling the gnarled growth curiously.

"I...don't remember, boo. But I'll try!"

The three circled the tree a fair number of times, looking for a gash or a knothole or anything that might lead to the world of fear. They tried tapping at the wood, Sofía even monkeyed her way up to the top to see if they could drop down into it from above, but it seemed for now they would have to wait.

* * *

The sun was beginning to set, burning the colors of the sky as it dipped below the horizon. Boo thought it would be best for them to get out of the woods before nightfall, and neither girl was about to disagree.

"Hey, I'll walk you home!" Sofía offered with a smile, "Just to make sure you get back safe."

Bing blushed slightly, "Thanks for today, I had a good time."

"Of course!" Sofía beamed, "Thanks for agreeing to go on a date with me! We should do it again sometime, I had a great time too. Even if monsters sorta fucked things up a bit."

The two laughed quietly as they arrived back to the pavement and set off down the road.

"Can I hold your hand?"

This time, it was Bing who asked, and Sofía's smile widened.

"Any time."

The two laced their fingers together delicately, shyly, and drifted off into comfortable silence.


	6. Chapter 6- Dread

"_FIGHTING EVIL BY MOONLIGHT, WINNING LOVE BY DA-"_

Sofía jolted awake as she heard her phone ringing on her night stand. Judging by the stillness of the house and the lack of birds chirping outside, it must have been pretty early. Much too early to be awake, and much too early for someone to be calling unless it was something important. Audrey's name lit up the screen so the chicana begrudgingly answered, if only to stop the noise.

"Do you know how early it is?" she mumbled into the phone, greeted by a much more lucid voice on the other end of the line.

"I got in!"

"Into...what?" Sofía's brain hadn't yet cleared the haze of sleep, and her ears were especially sensitive to the loud voice on the phone.

"The team! I made the team!" Audrey cheered.

"That's great," Sofía murmured, a genuine, if sleepy smile spread across her lips. "Can I ask why you called so early to tell me?"

"I wanted to make sure your date was over."

Sofía pulled the phone away from her ear to look at the time. 3:15 in the morning. She laughed weakly, "Yeah. It's over. That was sweet of you, thanks."

"There's a sort of an unofficial meet and greet practice or something today, you should come watch. Bing and Saanvi will be there too."

"What time?"

"Noon, in the north gym."

"Okay, I can probably make that. Do you need a ride?"

"No, Saanvi said she could pick me up."

"Oh good. Well I'll need to get back to sleep if I'm gonna make that, so I'll talk to you then?"

"Yes, okay! Goodnight! Goodbye!"

The other line clicked off abruptly and Sofía did the same, rolling over to try to get some sleep but instead coming face to face with the pink bat whose arms were folded over her chest and her face contorted into a scowl.

"God, you scared me," Sofía mumbled, having jumped slightly at the fairy's proximity. "What's the matter with you?"

"You're not making it easier to become diurnal with all that talking, boo!" the fuzzy thing huffed, "Keep it down!"

* * *

The day was refreshingly cool, the slightest stirrings of crisp fall air on the horizon. Sofía was determined to soak up as much of the warmth as she could before it dissipated, throwing on a maxi dress in her determination to keep summer alive. She opted to bike to the school today and give the old clunker a rest, tying up the end of her dress so it wouldn't catch on anything as she rode.

Redwood High felt so bizarre when it wasn't a school day. The empty parking lot in contrast to the normally bustling one made it seem as though something terrible had happened. Grimly, Sofía recalled the girl who had disappeared last week, and shook her head to dislodge the thought. No one else would disappear, not if she had anything to say about it.

Besides, now she had Bing to help her out. With such a powerhouse on her team, surely there was no way any of the anxoids would get away now. All they _really_ had to worry about now was the Dread, and stopping any more from coming over here. Once they figured out how the tree worked, they could plug up the portal and everything would be just fine.

So involved in her personal reassurance mantra, Sofía wasn't quite looking where she was going. Suddenly, there was someone mere inches from her bike's path and the mighty precure squealed in surprise and veered sharply to the right, quickly toppling over and crashing into the ground.

"Oh no, I'm so sorry! Here let me help you up."

A pale hand with long fingers and short manicured nails reached out towards the girl who lay sprawled out on the ground. Sofía blinked her eyes open, patting herself down to ensure she was still in one piece before taking the hand, brown eyes tracing up the arm to find who it belonged to.

The girl before her was quite possibly the most beautiful thing she'd ever laid eyes on. Impossibly tall, she had long elegant limbs that curved up to floral print shorts and a loose white blouse. Her lips were pink and glossy and shaped into a sincere, welcoming smile and something about the bright twinkle in her blue eyes made Sofía feel as though she could tell this girl her deepest secrets without judgment.

The angel helped Sofía to her feet, and even picked up the fallen bike for her. "I should be the one apologizing, I wasn't really looking where I was going, sorry!" Sofía insisted, chaining up her bike to the nearby rack. "Are you new? I don't think I've ever seen you around here before." Redwood wasn't the biggest of schools, and surely she would have remembered someone who looked this gorgeous.

The blonde nodded with a small smile. "I'm transferring in this week! I was actually wondering if you could help me find the band room?"

It wasn't until she asked for the band room that Sofía took note of the large black box on the ground beside her. "Oh! Yeah, sure. I can walk you there," she offered, leading the girl inside. "What do you play?"

Picking up the case with minimal effort despite its size, the angel looked around the school's interior curiously. "I play a few things, but this is my tuba," she said cheerfully.

"Wow, I wouldn't have pegged you as a band geek!" Sofía laughed, "You look like a model or something."

The would-be model smiled sweetly, "Aw, thank you. I'm just tall is all."

"How tall are you, anyway?"

"I think I'm somewhere around six foot one."

Suddenly it seemed like the girl had stretched further up into the air with that number, and Sofía stared at her aghast. "No way. I'm only four foot ten, that's not fair!"

"If you mixed the two of us together you'd get an average sized girl!" the girl giggled quietly.

"Yeah no kidding. We should have kids or something," Sofía laughed, the pale girl growing pink at the suggestion.

"I'm only joking!" Sofía said good naturedly, "I don't even know your name yet!"

"It's Fay."

"Nice to meet you Fay! My name's Sofía. And now that we got the formalities out of the way, we can go on with our beautiful children plan." Fay's face pinkened again and the chicana laughed, "Sorry, still kidding!"

"Sofía!"

Turning to look down another hall, the girls spotted Audrey waving and running towards them. "Hey, we're about to start doing some practice drills. Who is this?"

"Oh, Audrey this is Fay, she's new here!" Sofía introduced, Fay offering a gentle smile and holding up her free hand in greeting. "Fay this is my friend Audrey. Hey, isn't your little brother in the band?"

"Yes, Adrian is in the band. He plays the flute."

"I'll be sure to say hi if I see him," Fay chirped, swinging her instrument in front of her to hold with both hands. "I don't want to be late from my audition though, is the band room close?"

"Oh right! Sorry, yes it's right at the end of this hallway on the left! Can't miss it. And hey, if I see you tomorrow I can give you a tour around the school or something!" Sofía offered.

"I would like that! I'll look for you tomorrow," Fay agreed, turning to head off down the hall. "It was lovely to meet both of you!"

Sofía found her eyes lingering on the girl as she strode smoothly down the hallway.

"She is pretty," Audrey remarked matter-of-factly, "You should invite her to sit with us at lunch."

Sofía's eyes lit up, "I should! Our lunch group just keeps getting bigger, doesn't it? We're getting popular this year," she laughed, walking with her black haired companion to the gym. "Is Peyton coming to watch too?"

Audrey shook her head, swinging open the heavy metal doors to the gym. "She said she had a painting she needs to finish for a show."

* * *

The Redwood Devils didn't have the most affluent athletic departments, and the volleyball team didn't exactly rake in the funding quite like boys athletics. The north gym was used for sports deemed less important, and it appeared as though the facility was built in the 70s and had not been touched up since. Even the devil's head logo on the center of the floor looked saddened by the condition of the place with his amateurish paintjob that turned what was supposed to be a sinister smirk into a look of concern with its abundance of forehead wrinkles.

With a flourish Sofía untied the knot in her skirt and let the fabric cascade down to her ankles, now that it wasn't at risk of getting caught in a bike chain. "Go get 'em!" she encouraged her companion, Audrey running out where the rest of the girls were congregated and helping to set up the nets.

Upon climbing a suitable distance up the bleachers, Sofía pulled out a notebook to get a little work done while she watched. After all, she hadn't done any work yesterday and she couldn't get away with slacking off this early in the year. Looking up from her notebook, she caught Bing's eye as she wheeled out a basket of volleyballs. The prince smiled up at her and waved, her expression less retrained that it normally seemed as, for what felt like the first time, she smiled wide enough for her teeth to peek through between her plump lips. Her silky tresses were wound up in a bun atop her head, and Sofía found herself taking more than a few quick glances at the spandex athletic shorts she wore.

"Are you here to just watch?"

The closeness of the voice beside her made Sofía jump slightly, turning to see Colette had approached silently and sat down on the bleachers beside her while she had been busy eying the team captain. The tall, mousey haired girl seemed to always move that way. She was like a strange, mythical creature in the way she would appear without anyone's notice, or recount events in classes people were certain she wasn't in. She was never noticed, but always seemed to be there.

"Uh, yeah. I've got a few friends on the team so I came to watch their first practice together," Sofía explained with a little smile. "How about you?"

"I wanted to interview Bing for the newspaper. But I also want to take pictures of the practice," Colette said softly, as though she wanted to remain unnoticed despite the conversation. A nice looking camera hung from around her neck, RHS stickers plastered over the whole thing to ensure it wouldn't be stolen.

"Oh cool, so you're in the newspaper club or something?"

Colette nodded, gazing off to the players with her sleepy grey eyes. "I just like to write. But we're short people this year," she explained simply, "If you want to join you can."

"It sounds really neat!" Sofía replied earnestly, "But I run the Spectrum club and I uh...do stuff outside of school too. So I'm not sure I'd have time, sorry!"

The sunken-eyed girl shrugged apathetically, holding up the camera in long, thin hands and snapping a few photos. Every once in a while she jotted down little notes in her notebook whose cover was adorned with a homemade collage of animal photos, but she didn't speak again. Something about the girl made Sofía a little sad, though she couldn't quite pinpoint what, or why. Instead, she busied herself with her math homework, glancing up over the edge of her notebook every so often to watch the girls practice.

Audrey had since put on a headband to keep her choppy, asymmetrical hair off her forehead and sweat poured across where her eyebrows would have been. Bing and Saanvi had put each other's hair up into matching buns, the reveal of the scar on the Indian girl's face drawing some attention but no questions.

* * *

Sofía had impeccable timing, as she finished her first round of homework right as the girls stopped for a food break. Bing, Saanvi and Audrey all worked their way up the bleachers to sit with their littlest fan.

"You guys look great out there," Sofía congratulated. Colette mumbled her agreement quietly and Saanvi pulled out snacks from her duffel bag to pass around amongst the group.

"I'm feeling good about this season," Bing admitted with a hopeful smile.

"I wanted to talk to you and Saanvi about that," Colette piped up hesitantly. "Would you mi-"

The gaunt girl's voice was drowned out by the sounds of screams that echoed through the hallways. Sofía and Bing locked eyes in an instant, a fire lit behind their eyes.

"Saanvi, get everyone to the locker room and shut the door! Sofía and I will go see what's wrong," Bing instructed, much to Saanvi's dismay.

"What the hell do you mean 'see what's wrong'? Don't go out there you could get hurt!" she insisted, clasping her fingers tightly around the prince's wrist and trembling with fear etched in the whites of her eyes.

Bing grabbed hold of the girl's hands, squeezing tightly, "Just trust me, okay? I promise I'll be alright."

Saanvi's brows were knit tight together in resolve, and she finally nodded solemnly. Colette seemed to be somehow paler than normal as the rest of the group stood, Sofía offering the girl her hand to help her up. The other girls on the team clustered together, talking in shaky, hushed voices.

"Everyone! We're gonna go into the locker room, two girls are going to go see what's going on and we'll handle it from there," Saanvi shouted, turning to the gaunt girl beside her whose knuckles turned white as she gripped her camera with all her might, "Colette, come with us."

Sofía and Bing jumped from the bleachers and ran to the gym door, opening it tentatively. As far as they could see nothing was amiss, but there was still commotion from somewhere in the school.

"Do you think it's another one of those anxoids?" Bing asked as the pair ran quietly down the halls, peeking around corners for any sight of a monster.

"I guess so, I mean I've never heard anything else make someone scream like that," Sofía mused, suddenly stopping in her tracks when she realized where the noise was coming from. "I think it's in the band room! I met a girl this morning who was going to auditions there, I bet someone got really scared and attracted a Dread!"

As the two neared the room at the end of the hall they could feel a dense chill emanating from the room that seemed to confirm their suspicions. Bing stood on her toes as she peered through a window into the room, trying to see if she spotted anything.

"It's not an anxoid, it's smaller. It looks like a fox, is that Dread?"

Sofía nodded, holding out her hand and clasping her smoke bon-bomb in her fingers. "Maybe if we hurry we can stop it before it turns someone!" she said hastily, Bing producing her bon-bomb as well and reaching out to hold Sofía's hand in her own. Both girls lifted their items in the air, shouting in unison:

"**Nightmares nevermore! Pretty Cure trick-or-treat transformation!"**

The girls held hands tightly as they were lifted into the air, the magical energy that pulsated around them transforming their regular clothes into Pretty Cure garb. Tentatively Sofía wrapped her arms tightly around her partner, cheeks flushing pink as she returned the embrace, both of their corsets popping into place. The pair landed deftly back on the ground, throwing open the door with a surge of magical energy.

"**A warm smile on an autumn night, Cure Pumpkin!"**

"**A mischievous smile on a moonlit night, Cure Witch!"**

The two clasped hands hands once more, this time speaking in unison.

"**Banishing fear with the power of courage, we are Spooky! Pretty Cure!"**

Inside the room were five students and the band director, all of whom were huddled into a corner and armed with music stands as a Dread paced in angry circles in the center of the room. When it leapt at the crowd the director swung his stand at the monster, batting it out of the air, its terror mask still on its tail.

"Quick, Pumpkin!" Witch cried out, running between the monster and the civilians. "The Dread are made of fear too! If we wear it down I think we can purify it like an anxoid." She silently wished Boo had been there to tell them what to do. Was this even possible?

Pumpkin nodded, placing both hands over her heart until a bright orange glow shone between her fingers. She pulled out the bonewick wand with a flourish, aiming it at the shadowy fox. "Let's see if it works! **Pretty Cure Jack-o-Jinx!" **The flame at the end of her wand grew into a large grinning pumpkin shape and hurled at the monster, making impact with a sickening sizzle. The monster let out a pained yowl and Witch looked back over her shoulder at the people she shielded.

"Quick, get out of here!" she instructed, her violet eyes lingering on the girl she had met earlier that day. "Please! We will take care of it!" Fay's hands gripped the music stand tightly in her sweaty hands, hesitating for a moment before dropping the makeshift weapon and running from the room with the others.

Witch watched them as they fled, her eyes only brought back when she heard an angry, "Shit!" Turning back to the Dread, she saw it had begun to bubble like some strange tar, and seemed to be growing. She dashed towards the beast, gripping its tail and swinging it towards the wall, but it landed with ease against the vertical surface. It stood effortlessly on the wall, still bubbling and gurgling and snapping its jaws at the two cures.

"Maybe the mask is the source of its energy! Let's try that!" Witch suggested in exasperation, wishing now more than ever for an explanation from Boo. Pumpkin charged at the thing, but it avoided her attack by jumping from the wall to the ceiling. The bubbling seemed to simmer down, though now the Dread was no longer the size of a fox, but instead a large dog. With a gruesome squelch a single eye opened on the center of its head, its pupil focused on the Pretty Cure.

"Nasty," Witch grimaced, its yellowed stare making her skin crawl, "Keep trying for the mask, but don't let it put it on you!" She didn't dare to think what might happen should a terror mask get stuck to the face of someone as powerful as a Precure. The two girls leapt at the monster in unison, nearly crashing into one another as the monster slipped stealthily between them and the mask grazing Witch's arm. Pumpkin gripped her wand like a club and jumped towards it again, swinging with all her might at the mask and managing to make contact. A sharp crack cut the air and the orange cure took care to examine her wand to ensure it wasn't what had cracked.

"Nice job!" Witch cheered, spying the long crack down the center of the terror mask. The Dread gurgled, starting to shrink slowly back down to its normal size, the eye in the center of its face darting about the room rapidly. "Try aiming a spell at the eye!"

Pumpkin nodded, reciting her incantation once more and aiming the flaming jack-o-lanturn at the sickly eye on the monster's face. As soon as it collided it burst into fiery glitter and the Dread screeched, the eye covered once again as the inky blackness that comprised the beast began to melt over it. "Witch! Your turn!"

The purple cure nodded, tracing a hand down her left arm to summon her own wand and tracing a pentagram in the air.

"Here goes nothing! **Pretty Cure Haunted Hex!"**

The sigil blasted towards the writhing monster and upon impact it fell silent. Once the light of the spell died down, Witch could see what remained of the monster, a viscous pile of black sludge that seemed to be evaporating into nothingness bit by bit. When the remains had dissipated, all that was left was the mask which had been cracked clear in half.

"What do we do with it?" Pumpkin asked, crouching down and examining the remaining artifact.

"I'm not sure...Boo usually deals with them, but that's after they're used. I've never broken one before," Witch murmured, reaching out with a tentative hand. The moment her fingertips grazed the white surface the entire thing crumbled into dust in an instant.

"Well...I guess that's something," Pumpkin laughed quietly. "What should we tell the others?"

Mulling over the options, the purple cure shrugged, "That it was a small fire. People panicked, but it's all okay now?" It was a ridiculous suggestion, but it seemed any explanation they offered was accepted as truth when it came to events regarding Frighton. It was almost as if the high levels of concentrated, paranormal fear made everyone especially susceptible to persuasion.

The girls de-transformed and opened the door to the band room, finding Colette sitting in the hallway hugging herself tightly.

"Colette! What are you doing out here?" Sofía cried, running up to the girl and crouching down beside her. "Are you okay? Where are the others?"

"I-I was scared. W-what was happening?"

"There was just a small fire, and people panicked. Everything is alright," Bing said gently. The gaunt girl blinked and nodded slowly, her tremors ceasing. Sofía stood and helped the girl to her feet.

"Why don't we go check on the others?"

* * *

The viewfinder on the camera had held on the solitary image of a blurry, shadowy shape of what appeared to be a dog, and two girls in motion. One had her fists clenched, ready to swing and the other bared what looked like a club, ready to strike the animal.

Colette lay in bed, staring at the camera's viewfinder on her nightstand and feeling some terrible mix of fear and anger building up inside of her, the pressure enough to give her a splitting headache.

"They lied...they lied…"


	7. Chapter 7- New

The unfamiliar school was a labyrinth guarded by the prying eyes of unknown faces. Fay loitered outside the doors and watched the sun begin to climb through the rose-tinted sky, holding her bag in one hand and a paper print out of her schedule in the other. The blonde girl jumped suddenly, certain that someone had come up behind her and attacked her as a part of some strange high school hazing ritual. Was that actually a thing?

Looking behind her, the blonde saw no one, but a quick look down revealed the safety pin in the back of her skirt had burst open and jabbed her in the back. That was as good a reason as any to go inside and find a bathroom. Gathering the hem of her skirt in one hand to ensure it wouldn't fall, she walked carefully in search of a bathroom so as not to be stabbed again. The walls were lined with alternating red and black lockers, the occasional declarations of school pride dotted down the hall.

Two bathroom doors stood at the end of the hallway, and Fay felt the familiar twinge of uncertainty as she approached them, pressing her lips together tightly with resolve before stepping into the womens restroom. She was thankful to find it unoccupied as she craned her neck to refasten the safety pin to the back of her skirt. In order to get something that was long enough for a girl of her height, some sacrifices had to be made in the waist area. Hopefully she could get into contact with a nearby tailor.

The door swung open and Fay jumped slightly, yet again pricking herself with the pin.

"Oh wow! Hey Fay!"

Sofía let the door swing closed behind her, approaching the girl twisted around in front of the mirror. "Do you need help with that?"

Fay took a moment to look back at the little bead of blood that poked up from her skin, and nodded in defeat. "I do...I might have too much fabric in there so it keeps busting open," she explained softly.

"Oh okay. I can probably get it! You should go see my dad, he's really great at sewing I bet he could fix this up to fit you better!" Sofía mentioned as she plucked the safety pin deftly from the musician's hands. Scooping up all the excess fabric, her little hands worked the pin nimbly into place. "Let me know if you need another one at some point later today, my friend Peyton always has shit like that in her bag," she laughed.

The blonde turned to look at her backside in the mirror once again, the pin secure and hidden amongst the folds of fabric. "Wow, thank you! That looks great." Sofía dismissed the compliment with a wave of her hand.

"It's no problem at all! Hey tell you what, I gotta go really bad but if you wait for me I'll introduce you to my friends! That way if any of them are in your classes they can help you out!"

"Thank you, I would like that!" Fay said curtly, loitering by the door to the bathroom until her tour guide reemerged. Eyes were still affixed to the new girl as the two walked through the halls, but having Sofía at her side helped her breathe easy. They approached the courtyard in the center of the school where Fay spotted a voluptuous red headed girl and a lanky girl with choppy black hair sitting on a small half wall outcrop. She recognized the black haired girl from the day before, and smiled pleasantly as they approached.

"Hello again, Audrey right?"

Peyton's eyes widened as the two approached, biting down on her lip with her large front teeth as she grinned. "Wow! You're gorgeous!" she blurted, Audrey expelling a brief laugh at her friend's expense. "My name's Peyton, what's yours?" the redhead hopped off the wall and extended a hand to the statuesque girl before her.

Fay laughed softly, taking Peyton's hand in a firm handshake, "I'm Fay, nice to meet you Peyton."

"Nice to meet you too! What pronouns does an angel like you use?"

The blonde's face flushed slightly at the flattery and she cast a sideways glance at the ground, "I like she, thanks for asking."

"Oh shit I didn't ask yesterday! Damn it I'm sorry!" Sofía apologized, "I'm a disgrace to my club!"

"You have a club here?" Fay questioned.

"Yeah! I am the president of the Spectrum club, we talk about things like gender and sexuality and stuff. If you're looking for a club you should totally come to our first meeting for the year! We meet on the last Monday of every month right after school."

"That sounds nice," Fay complimented with a sweet smile, "Maybe I can make it, I guess it depends on what happens with band."

Peyton's green eyes widened again, "You're in the band? Gorgeous and a musician that's not fair!"

"Well we'll see. I'd really like to be the drum major, but since I'm new I'm not sure how good my chances are."

"That's so cool!" Peyton gushed, "When will you know?"

"Hopefully when I go to my band class."

Peyton snatched the schedule from the girl's hands and the three craned their necks over it to see if there were any matches.

"Oh, Fay you're in my physics class!"

"And math with me."

"And we have jewelry together!"

Fay felt the fondness in her heart steadily grow for the girls, each of whom seemed eager to help out. As the bell rung Sofía escorted her to physics where she slid easily into the rhythm of the class. After Sofía gawked for a bit at the girl who understood the material exponentially better than she did, she passed Fay off to Audrey who walked with the girl to math, who in turn scouted out Peyton's bushy red hair so she could take the newcomer to jewelry.

"So you were homeschooled? Then how do you know how to do marching band?"

Peyton's fascination with the girl hadn't waned since their first encounter in the morning, and she took it upon herself to thoroughly interview her.

"Yeah, I've always been allowed to do extracurriculars and local schools and stuff I just did all my learning at home," Fay explained, "And my mom is in the military so I've been an expert at marching for a long time!" she laughed. The two approached the courtyard as the lunch bell rang, sitting down with two more girls Fay had yet to meet.

"A new addition to the table?" the black haired girl asked, her sideswept bangs obscuring the right half of her face. The girl beside her with bright almond eyes didn't say anything, though she looked at Fay as though she recognized her from somewhere, but was unsure of where. Come to think of it, she was vaguely familiar to Fay too…

"Yeah! This is Fay, she's new here! Fay this is Saanvi and Bing, they're on the volleyball team and really popular. They've decided to grace our table because Sofía's got the hots for Bing."

Bing's face pinkened slightly, and she rested her head in her hand in an attempt to obscure it. There went her chance for someone to meet her without her reputation preceding her.

"Nice to meet you both! Everyone here has been so sweet to me, I really appreciate it," she said earnestly, sitting down with Peyton and nudging the girl affectionately.

"Fay is a secret homeschooled genius who's gonna be our new drum major!"

The blonde shook her head, unpacking her lunch and spreading it out before her, "I'm definitely not a genius, I just work hard. And I won't know about being a drum major until later!"

"Oh wow, so were you at those band auditions yesterday?" Saanvi asked, awed, "Did you see that fire that broke out?" Bing shifted uncomfortably in her seat, but no one seemed to take any notice.

"Yeah I did actually! I was right there...I must've really panicked because I can't really remember it very clearly...a boy who was auditioning was really scared and I was trying to help him feel better because I thought he was just nervous but...then…" Trailing off gently, the girl attempted to fill in the puzzling gaps in her memory when suddenly another girl plopped down at the table.

"Hey guys!" Sofía chirped, rummaging through her little purple lunch box. "How's your first day going so far Fay?"

Previously deep in thought, Fay's attention was pulled away to her petite companion, all prior concerns about the day before dissipating from her mind. "It's going well! I'm a little nervous for band, and then after that is just English."

"You have English last today?"

Bing finally spoke up, her stress fading into the background alongside Fay's concerns. "Is it with Mrs. Wilson? If so we can sit together."

Fay beamed, "I'd like that!"

* * *

As it had been all day, all eyes were on the new girl as Fay walked to the band room, having bid an early goodbye to the group so that she was sure to be a little early to her next class. The room appeared empty as the blonde pulled her horn from its locker and took her seat, but moments later she spied movement in the far corner of the room. The closet door swung open and a frazzled looking girl with wide hips and wider eyes tumbled out.

"Someone really needs to get around to organizing that thing!" the dark skinned girl huffed, scooting a few fallen boxes back with the toe of her shoe and shutting the door behind her. "You're new, huh?"

"I am! My name's Fay, nice to meet you."

The girl from the closet introduced herself as Nia, self-proclaimed mega nerd and flutist extraordinaire. Her clothes were just a little too big, her hands hiding well within the sleeves of her uniform's cardigan and the hem reaching well past the top of her skirt and hugging her hips.

"How long have you been playing?" It was the first thing the chatty girl had said that wasn't something about herself, and Fay found herself suddenly fumbling to get back from listening mode into conversation mode.

"A few years. This is my first time in a school with a regular band though," she admitted.

"Sweet! I'm sure you'll be fine, just stick with me! Are you gonna march too?"

"Yeah! I actually came to the drum major auditions yesterday so we'll see how that goes."

Nia's eyes grew wide and she leaned in closer, "Did you hear about what happened to the last girl? She just up and disappeared right before the school year. Her whole family just left without telling anyone. Super weird. Hopefully you don't disappear too," she teased, making ominous ghost noises until others began to file into the classroom.

The director, a stout man with dark eyes and a bushy mustache took to the middle of the room once class started. "Before we warm up today, I'd like to introduce everyone to Fay Weaver. She's new to the school, and she is going to be our drum major for this fall's marching season!"

All eyes turned to her and the scattered applause was like music to her ears.

* * *

Bing was sitting beside an empty seat as promised when Fay found her way to English at the end of what felt like the most exhausting extended introduction ever. It was nice for so many to be showing interest in her, but reintroducing herself to person after person had become a tiresome task. After all, she wasn't used to being the center of so much attention. The blonde took the open seat beside Bing with a grateful smile, breathing the softest of exasperated sighs.

"Long day?"

Shoot. Fay had been hoping she didn't notice. "Yeah," she smiled weakly, "Just a lot of saying the same things over and over. Lots of talking to people."

Bing let out a knowing hum. "I know that feeling. It'll be over soon. And if you need, you can always just find a nice quiet place to hide out in."

"Won't I get in trouble for that?"

Bing laughed quietly, "Don't worry about it. You're new, I'm sure they won't be too hard on you."

A mousey brown haired girl sat down at a desk a few rows front of them, and despite her best efforts to be sly Fay caught her eyes flickering back towards the two of them often. Bing didn't seem to notice, staring off at the board absently.

"Hey, I think that girl might want to talk to you," Fay said in a hushed whisper. "She keeps looking back here."

"Hm?" Bing pulled her attention to the girl in question, though she shook her head shortly after. "Nah that's Colette. She's just kind of like that, I think. I heard her family is all kinda weird. She's nice though, you two might get along."

Class started off with another introduction as per usual, the gaunt looking girl never looking away from Fay as she gave her rehearsed life story abridged. At the end of class after Bing had bid farewell to the new girl, Colette reached out and tapped Fay on the back. She smiled warmly as she turned.

"Hi, you're Colette, right?"

"Are you friends with Bing Morgan?"

The question was bizarre, but Fay's smile didn't falter. "We just met today, but I'd like to think of us as friends."

"Be careful around her. She is a liar."

This was enough to break Fay's smile, but the mousey haired girl walked away before she could even think of what to say in response.

A liar? What was she talking about? A whisper in the back of her mind reminded her of the prince's unusual look when they first met...and that unplaceable feeling that she had met her before.

What did Colette know?

* * *

Once practice rolled around, Fay was finally beginning to feel like she was getting the hang of things. She had made it through the day, and had finally made it to the part of the routine where she knew what she was doing. Making her way to the emptied parking lot in her athletic shorts and pink tank top, the blonde adjusted her ponytail, pulling her tresses higher, tightening the hair tie, and pulling down a few strands to frame her thin face.

Her little podium sat on the ground waiting to be assembled, which the girl did eagerly before climbing atop her new throne to get a better view of the surrounding landscape before any others came out. The school was surrounded on three sides by woods, and the late-day sun that weighed on the leaves and branches cast heavy shadows that slipped and slid with the tremors of the trees in wind. Something else seemed to be moving through the trees, though Fay couldn't quite make it out. Surely just an irregular shadow.

"Yooo!" The girl from the closet, Nia, skipped out to the parking lot, dressed in clothes just as large as what she had been wearing earlier. "Dang, you know you have really great posture!"

Fay turned her attention down to the girl on the ground, sitting down on the podium and letting her legs swing childishly off the side. "I'm from a military family, I guess I never noticed," she admitted with a small smile. "About how many students march, do you think?"

Nia scratched her shaven head wrinkled up her nose. "Dunno, I guess like...maybe 50? We're pretty small," she admitted, "But Redwood is kinda small too so I guess we're probably on par percentage wise!"

"Oh, good! I was hoping it'd be small...I think its nice when everyone gets to know everyone," Fay admitted with a wistful smile. "I've always wanted to join the military but I'd need to be with a small group to work best."

"Jeez, we got ourselves a sentimental drum major," Nia snorted as a few more students began to trickle out from the building. "You'd better not be a softie or you'll get torn apart by some of these guys."

Fay smiled a deceptively sweet smile, "I guess we'll just have to wait and see."

* * *

The new girl's first practice at Redwood could not have gone better. Nia found herself slack jawed at the change that overcame the towering blonde once practice had started, even the captain of the drumline, known for being cocky and self-centered, looked intimidated. The stern, steeley-eyed look and precise actions didn't falter even during water breaks, but as soon as practice had ended Fay had somehow returned to the demure, willowy girl that everyone had seen in class earlier that day.

Fay gathered up her things into her bag and placed them in the basket of her bike, her mind slowly replaying the events of the evening, though not for the sake of analysing her or the band's performance. Instead she retraced the practice in her minds eye to try and make sense from the strange shadows that continued to creep through her peripheral vision. Even when the sun had sunk too far to be casting shadows they remained, always just out of her line of sight. Once, she swore she caught sight of someone watching them from the woods. It was enough to make her skin crawl, though not anything worth getting worked up over, she supposed.

Pedaling off towards home, Fay's eyes wandered occasionally back to the woods that flanked the sidewalk to her right, searching for any signs of movement in a forest that earlier seemed to be teeming with shadowed life. What if someone had been watching them? Should she tell someone? She had heard about the recent disappearance of a girl who used to attend Redwood, and even the drum major she was replacing had mysteriously vanished at the start of the school year.

"Oh!" She squeezed the breaks suddenly as a young girl ran across her path and continued to the other side of the street, her dark curls bouncing along behind her as her little patchwork legs carried her quickly out of sight. Fay had to put a foot down to steady her from the sudden stop, and her eyes followed the girl with concern until she had disappeared. Had she been coming from the woods? It was awfully late for a girl that age to be out here alone, and she turned to the treeline to see if any parents were following after her.

What she saw instead made her blood run cold, her legs suddenly feeling weak as she let her bike drop to the ground as she stumbled backwards.

It was tall. Much taller than Fay, which was something highly unusual. It stood just beyond the first few layers of trees, obscured slightly by some branches though it wasn't hard to see the thing as it was pitch black, darker than anything the girl had ever seen to the point that it strained her eyes to look at it for too long. Its body was thin and gangly, one arm stretched out to a tree where its large hand rested, spindly fingers like spider legs against the bark.

Whatever it was looked humanoid, except for its face. While the rest of it was impossibly dark, its face was pale and white, a small goatee twisting from under its chin. It had low set, long ears, and tall black horns just like those satanic goat heads she had seen on pentagrams. The worst part about the whole thing was the blank, black gaping hole in each eye socket. Though it had no pupils, Fay was positive it was looking straight at her. Its blank stare made her heart pound in her chest, so hard she was certain she couldn't breathe.

She held her breath until she began to feel dizzy, unable to take her eyes from the goat-headed monster that stared at her, unmoving from the woods. She had never been more scared in her life, and she was filled with a sense of impending doom that brought tears to her eyes and panic made her hands shake.

Slowly, the monster took a step towards her.


	8. Chapter 8- Baphomet

Some otherworldly force must have been driving her legs as the little girl sprinted through down, the patter of small feet on empty streets pricking holes in the blanket of silence. Her heart pounded fearfully, the throbbing in her head fluctuating the focus of her vision.

She had to find that girl.

She had to tell her.

There was a monster on the loose.

* * *

Sofía made the decision to loiter around after school until Bing got out of practice. The bleachers were markedly uncomfortable, and she made a note to invest in a more comfortable stadium chair if she was going to be spending so much time sitting around in the gym. That, or she needed her butt to fill out a little more. Standing and stretching, the girl decided to wander a bit while the girls were running repetitive drills, figuring she wouldn't miss anything too exciting.

The sound of the band practicing out in the parking lot caught her attention, and the melody guided Sofía outside to take a peek. Outside of one football game she had gone to her freshman year, she hadn't really sat and watched the band. Even then, she had spent part of the half time at the concession stand getting a pretzel and and explaining the rules of football to Peyton who only came to see if the cute boy from her math class would play. So she had seen maybe one third of a performance.

Truth be told she wasn't really watching the performance this time around either, as she settled down on a little patch of grass. Really, she only listening to the music and looking up at the girl on the podium with a small smile. Fay's face was serious but warm, like a mother hen of all the little chicks that chirped and strutted about at her feet. Her hands moved rhythmically, as though she coaxed the music along with them until the sounds blossomed in the air. Watching the motions left Sofía in a trance like state; she couldn't quite recall when she had let her eyes close.

A gentle nudge woke her from her brief siesta, and Sofía's eyes opened to the sight of Bing standing over her, strands of dark brown hair undone from her bun and clinging to her face.

"Hey, are we going to hang out or are you going to sleep all day?"

She spoke with flat intonation, but there was a playful smile in her eyes as she reached out to help Sofía up. Standing and slinging her bag over her shoulder, the two girls set off down the street. "You know, it probably wouldn't hurt for us to train a little bit every once in a while, just so we can be in top shape for any new monsters that show up."

Sofía nodded in agreement, frowning at the memory of her first fight, and first failure. She couldn't let that happen again. "Definitely. We can't afford any losses, especially when we still don't know what's happening. Boo has been trying to figure some things out, I wonder how far she's gotten with that," she mused, wringing her hands together, "But I promise I'll work harder. I won't weigh you down."

This last remark made Bing stop, reaching out to grab Sofía's wrist. "Hey, you don't weigh me down," she said softly. "If it weren't for you I wouldn't even know what I was doing. Don't be so hard on yourself, okay? We're a team, right?" A gentle smile pulled across her lips and she squeezed Sofía's hand tightly in her own. "I'm your partner, we're equals."

The smaller girl felt her heart flutter in her chest, taking a step towards Bing and throwing her arms tightly around her. "Thank you." Bing returned the gesture, strong arms wrapping her in a tight embrace. Swallowing in a vain attempt to clear the knot in her throat, Sofía's voice came out as an embarrassingly soft squeak as she pulled back slightly.

"Do you think I could kiss you?"

Now it was Bing's turn to experience mild heart palpitations as her face flushed a lovely shade of red. In that instant, she felt as though she had completely forgotten how kissing worked. How much should she pucker? Should she lick her lips first, or was that gross? Which way was she supposed to tilt her head? What do you do about noses? She was supposed to close her eyes, right? What if she missed? Though her mind was entirely preoccupied, the prince managed a quiet, "S-sure."

Slowly, Sofía raised onto her toes to bridge the gap between them, resting her hand gently on Bing's shoulder for balance as she leaned in…

"HELP!"

Startled, Sofía's heels dropped back to the ground and Bing jumped noticeably, whipping her head to the side to see who had yelled.

"E-Evelyn?" Sofía murmured, spying the little girl coming up the street.

"Do you know her?"

"Yeah! She was there when I became a Pretty Cure, her nanny was Emily, that girl who went missing!" Sofía explained, grabbing Bing's hand and running down to meet the girl.

"Sofía! Sofía there is a big monster in the woods," the little girl cried, throwing her arms around her waist and clinging to her.

From the opposite direction, Bing spotted their little bat fairy flying towards them equally as frantic as the little girl as she shouted over to them.

"Pretty Cure! I sense something big has just arrived from Frighton, boo!"

Sofía's eyes widened, and she looked down at the little girl, her coiled hair littered with leaves and twigs. "Hey Evelyn, do you think you could show us where the monster was? I bet my friend Bing would give you a piggy back ride." The little girl's eyes widened at the prospect of a piggy back ride, and she looked up shyly at the girl she had not met yet.

"C-can I hold Boo also?"

The fairy pouted indignantly, but Sofía shot her a stern look and the little bat begrudgingly floated down to Evelyn's level and allowed the girl to wrap an arm around her. Sofía bent down to pick up the girl by her waist as Bing crouched down so she could set the child on her shoulders.

"It was back that way," Evelyn said, pointing down the street from whence she came.

The trio set off as directed, the girl petting Boo nervously as they went.

"Hey Evelyn, was this monster like the one that attacked your nanny?" Sofía asked as they rounded a corner and headed towards the woods, which was infinitely more imposing knowing that something so sinister lurked inside.

The girl shook her head, clutching Boo tighter as she leaned against the back of Bing's head. "No, this monster was bigger. And had big pointy horns. Like a goat person."

"A goat person?" Bing asked incredulously. That didn't sound like anything they had seen so far, and the vaguely faunian image her brain concocted looked humorous at best, not something to run screaming from.

As they neared, the first thing that caught Sofía's eye was not the monster lurking just beyond the edge of the woods, but the girl strewn on the sidewalk.

"Fay!"

The girl on the ground didn't move, staying still as could be in a fetal position with her face covered. Bing saw the monster right away, feeling a nervous pit in her stomach as soon as she laid eyes on it that made her feel ill. The pale, goat-faced monster stared right back with empty black eyes, moving slowly through the underbrush, so slowly that it was hard to tell if it moved at all though it grew slowly closer.

"Boo, get Evelyn somewhere safe," Bing instructed, pulled the girl down from her shoulders. The fairy was staring wide-eyed at the monster as well, though she quickly wiggled from the girl's grasp and grabbed onto her hand with a paw.

"This way, boo!"

Sofía had rushed to Fay's side, resting a hand on her shoulder gently and feeling her shake underneath her touch.

"It'll be easier to move her if we transform," Bing noted hastily, coming up to Sofía and grabbing ahold of her hand and holding her Bon-Bomb in the other. Sofía quickly produced her own, standing to her feet and looking at the monster defiantly.

"Let's do it!"

"**Nightmares nevermore, trick-or-treat transformation!"**

The monster stopped moving as the girls became surrounded by smoke from their bombs, only to reappear from the smog as Pretty Cure warriors.

"**A mischievous smile on a moonlit night, Cure Witch!"**

"**A warm smile on an autumn night, Cure Pumpkin!"**

"**Banishing fear with the power of courage, we are Spooky! Pretty Cure!"**

The instant the smoke cleared Witch dashed forward and collected Fay in her arms, leaping into the air as Pumpkin appeared from behind her with fists clenched, swinging a punch towards the shadowy monster. Despite its incomprehensibly smooth and slow movement before, the goat-headed being abruptly moved from the orange cure's path and sent her crashing into the ground a few yards away.

"Pumpkin!" Witch cried, landing a few streets over and setting Fay back on the ground just as Boo and Evelyn reached the same location. "Boo! Look after her too, I think that thing might've done something to her," she instructed before dashing off again.

Reaching the woods once again, she saw Pumpkin back on her feet with the bonewick wand in her hand, launching pumpkin fireballs at the beast that avoided the attacks with relative ease each time. Dashing to the side Witch kicked off from a nearby tree for momentum as she hurled herself at the goat-monster to attack from behind.

Just as she was about to make impact the figure disappeared without warning once again, having moved a few feet to the side in a matter of milliseconds. Witch struggled to land on her feet, skidding to a halt next to Pumpkin who clenched her wand in her hand tightly.

"I'll catch it if I have to burn this whole forest down!" she growled, raising her wand in the air once more, "**Pretty Cure Jack-o-Jinx!"** Rapid fire, three fiery pumpkins shot from the wand and into the air, tracing a glistening arc through the sky before crashing back down to earth.

Just as before, the monster moved just before being struck, but this time Pumpkin had also dashed towards the figure, which moved straight into the line of her swing as she punched straight into its gut.

Pumpkin gave a satisfied smirk, though the smile fell quickly as she tried to pull back her hand and found it stuck within the impossible darkness of the figure's body. Suddenly, the orange cure dropped to her knees as the monster loomed over her. She began to shake as color began to slowly drain from her skin as she pulled frantically on her trapped hand. "H-help me!"

"Pumpkin!" Witch cried, running to the aid of her friend. As she ran she traced her fingertips down her left arm, producing her own wand from her palm and carving a pentagram in the air. "**Pretty Cure Haunted Hex!"**

The blazing sigil fired at the figure who moved effortlessly out of the way as before, but also let go of its hold on Pumpkin who collapsed to the ground, skin ashen and eyes blank and white. "Pumpkin! Pumpkin are you okay? Can you stand?"

Between raspy breaths, the empty eyed girl stared at the purple cure murmuring, "Why didn't you help me?"

"Wh-what? I'm sorry, I didn't know that would happen!" Witch insisted, tears beginning to well up in her violet eyes as she scooped up her partner in her arms. "I'll get you out of here!"

"There's no point. I won't make it," she insisted weakly, "You dragged me into this...and you let me down...I'm so...disappointed. Why do you hate me so much?"

Witch's heart felt like it has slowed to a stop, tears that had been threatening to fall now rolled freely down her cheeks as she held Pumpkin tightly. "I-I don't hate you, I didn't mean for you to get involved in this! I'm so sorry..." As one tear landed on the injured girl's ashen skin it began to flake away, slowly at first but growing until her entire body began to disintegrate. It continued peeling until there was nothing left of her but a pile of grey ashes on the ground.

"P-Pumpkin! No!" Witch collapsed onto the ground, burying her face in her hands. It couldn't be real. This had to be some kind of nightmare. She couldn't be gone just like that. "I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you from this, I wasn't strong enough…"

"Witch!"

The purple cure pulled her hands away from her tear-stained face to see her companion at her side, holding her tightly. "Witch are you okay? What happened there?"

Witch's eyes went wide and she began to shake her head frantically. "Wh-what I...you were...!" she spluttered, reaching out to touch the girl to see if her eyes deceived her.

"I'm fine! But you...you just collapsed...I brought you over here so you wouldn't get hurt, but I need to go back."

"No!" Witch grasped onto the hem of Pumpkin's skirt tightly. "Don't go! Please!"

"What you saw wasn't real!" Pumpkin insisted, taking a tight hold of the girl's hand. "Please, I promise I'll be okay but I can't let that monster get away."

"I am not going anywhere." The two girls looked over to see the tall goat-headed figure standing a couple yards away. "If you are done trying to fight me, then I will say my piece and leave of my own volition. I don't much care for Earth, so I would appreciate leaving sooner, rather than later." The figure's voice was deep and gravely, and yet it spoke in a refined manner. What was more troubling was the way it spoke without an inch of its face moving, not even the slightest twitch of its lips.

"Who are you?" Bing demanded, wrapping her arms tightly around Witch who was still shaking in panic.

"You may call me Lady Baphomet. I am from a world much different than this one. I do not come with hostile intent, only to ask that you leave my pets be to do their job."

"No! Not when you're trying to take over with your monsters!" Bing shouted irritably.

"That shows how little you know of me. I do not plan to take over the Earth. That has been attempted in the past, and is the reason my home was destroyed by Pretty Cure such as yourselves. My only wish is to repopulate, and I am not greedy. My pets will only capture those who already have great fear in their hearts, so surely they would be more at home with me in Frighton than here, don't you think?"

"You're...taking people to Frighton?" Witch asked in dismay, "How dare you! Return them now, or we will just go there and take them back!"

"I am afraid that would not be a good idea. Here I am limited in my powers. I cannot hurt you here. But in Frighton...I am afraid in Frighton you would not stand a chance against me. Not even one of my pets."

"We've taken down enough of them to know what to do!" Witch hissed.

"You are a child. You do not understand. Pretty Cure, I am ordering you to stand down. I will continue to be cordial and fair only so long as you agree to leave my pets alone. Should you disobey, I will not be kind to you. You will lose. Please do not take this warning lightly, for the sake of yourselves, and your world."

Slowly, the shadowy figure raised her hand in stiff salutation and dissipated into thin air before their eyes like a wisp of smoke. The two de-transformed and stood to their feet, Sofía still visibly shaken by what she had seen. It had felt so real, had it really all been a hallucination?

Finding Boo alone made the pair panic for a moment, until the fairy explained it had taken the young girl home. Fay, on the other hand, stood off on the sidewalk a ways, collecting her bike which had bent when she had dropped it at the sight of Lady Baphomet.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" Bing asked as they approached the blonde. Fay jumped, startled by the appearance of the two girls in the dim light of dusk.

"Hmm, fine I guess. I think I had a panic attack or...something, and the fender of my bike is bent which is going to make it hard to get home. I guess I crashed…maybe I'm more worried about starting public school than I thought," she laughed light heartedly, though the image of a pale-faced goat creature was imprinted vividly on her mind's eye. Surely that wasn't just some kind of stress hallucination but...there's no way they would believe her.

"Bing and I were just gonna go to my house, you could come with us and I'll drive you home," Sofía offered, betraying some weariness in her tired smile.

"That's so nice of you, thanks so much!"

* * *

The road to Fay's house was long and winding, leading to the outskirts of town deep within the woods, which set both Bing and Sofía on edge. Boo had gone to make sure that there was no sign of Lady Baphomet elsewhere, and it seemed she told the truth and left, for now.

"Hey Fay, give me your phone and I'll put in our numbers so you can call us if you need help with homework or anything," Sofía suggested, holding out a hand and taking the blonde's cell phone after she pulled up to her house.

"You should just ask Sofía. I'm not going to be much help with homework," Bing admitted shamelessly with a small smile. "But you seem to know what you're doing anyway."

"Thank you both, I really appreciate it," Fay said earnestly as she collected her phone and opened the door. "And thanks for keeping my bike...I'll come get it tomorrow and see if my dad can fix it. I'll bake you guys cookies or something tonight as a thanks for helping me out today! We can share them at lunch tomorrow!" she suggested cheerfully, scooting out of the car.

"Aww, so sweet! That sounds great, see you tomorrow!" Sofía called, waiting in the driveway until Fay entered the house. "Guess now it's time to get you home too huh?"

The drive over to Bing's house was a quiet trip, each girl's mind occupied with thoughts of the day's encounter. Sofía was the one who broke the silence and she turned onto Bing's street.

"Sorry we didn't really get to hang out today...bad timing I guess," she laughed softly, pulling into Bing's driveway.

"Hey, it's not your fault we're superheroes," Bing smiled wryly, "But there is something I was a little disappointed about."

"Hm?" Sofía tensed up, the image of a dying Cure Pumpkin flashing back into her mind again, talking about how she disappointed her…even if that hadn't been real the pain in her heart surely was.

"You still owe me a kiss."

"O-oh! Right," Sofía sputtered, her insecurity taking a backseat to the giddy feeling of new love. Carefully, she leaned over the center console of her car, touching her fingertips tentatively to the girl's cheek before bridging the gap between their lips with a kiss. They lingered there for a moment, savoring the closeness of one another until Bing pulled away slowly.

"Was that uh, okay?" Bing asked hesitantly, warranting an incredulous look from Sofía.

"Of course, why?" With abrupt realization her eyes lit up and her mouth fell open. "Wait! Was that your first kiss?!" Bing pouted slightly, looking down into her lap non-committally. "Oh my god! If I had known I wouldn't have kissed you in the car I mean damn, that's a big deal! I'll tell you what, I'll plan a better one for next time," she insisted with a playful wink. "You've probably gotta go though, huh? I'll see you tomorrow! Have a good night!"

Slinking out of the car, Bing walked up the steps to her front door, waving a hand in farewell as she unlocked the door. Even when the car was out of sight and the door was shut behind her, she could not hide her giddy smile.


	9. Chapter 9- Consequences

Pitter patters of little paws echoed across the barren landscape. Outside of the large tree in the center of the decimated town, nothing grew. No life lived here, there was only rubble and ruin, twisted and warped remnants of buildings and a thick layer of grey dust that the shadow kicked up as it ran towards the largest of the ruins. A thick layer of smog obscured the red sun that hung large and low in the sky, blending away the difference between the wasteland and the desert sky until the horizon was indistinguishable.

Down in the ruins, the Dread found its way through the maze of rubble until it reached the wrought iron door leading down into the cellar. The creature pressed itself against the cold stone of the ruins, flattening itself into a shadow that slunk easily through the crack between the door and the wall. Reassuming a three dimensional shape the Dread trotted past the white-faced anxoid grunts that busied themselves lifting rocks and rubble and rearranging them into what vaguely resembled furniture.

Past the entryway lie a room with black drapery that fluttered ever so slightly, despite the total absence of wind. It was here Lady Baphomet stood, hunched over a stone table covered in pale white masks. Noticing her company, the goat-headed figure straightened up, gesturing towards the table which the fox-like monster jumped upon deftly.

"Welcome back. I hope you have good news," she murmured, petting the Dread affectionately. "Have the Pretty Cure been giving you problems, or have they heeded my warning?"

The shadow monster looked up to the figure, opening a single, large eye in the center of its face with a wet smack as the blackness peeled away. Holding the face of the creature between her hands, Lady Baphomet peered into its eye momentarily. She turned away in disgust, dropping the head of the creature who allowed its solitary eye to recede back into its featureless face.

"I suppose it can't be helped. Those girls do not understand the situation, and are making poor decisions. But we warned them, didn't we? They will have to deal with the consequences. That is good news for us, you won't need to settle for picking off only the weakest and most frightened of them. Since they have ignored my request, there is no reason for us to play nice. Continue with the current plan, but I want you to keep an eye out for the brave ones as well. We can't have any new Pretty Cure awakening."

The Dread listened patiently, bowing its pointed head as the goat-headed figure turned back to face it. "And start using the new masks."

* * *

"I'm surprised your parents let you have me sleep over! There's no way my parents would be okay with that!"

Sofía lay in a bright yellow pajama set on Bing's bed, giving her cat a few gentle pats as he sniffed the newcomer curiously. Bing stood in the doorway of her bathroom brushing her teeth and attempting to speak without spraying toothpaste suds at her girlfriend.

"Well they don't know know about...us. They don't even know I'm queer."

"Oh wow, really? Are you worried what might happen if you came out?"

Bing shrugged, "No, not really. They never asked and I never told. We're a sort of 'keep it to yourself' kind of family."

_No kidding. _Sofía thought, chuckling quietly to herself as Bing went to spit and rinse. The prince reemerged shortly after with her hair piled into a bun on the top of her head.

"Do you know where Boo has been?" Bing questioned as she crawled into bed, picking up Poe and setting him in her lap. The cat entertained her pets for a short while, but soon leapt from her lap and dashed across the room to some dark corner of the basement.

Sofía shrugged, "I think she's kinda stressed by not knowing what's going on. She spends all her time at that weird tree, probably trying to figure out how to get us to Frighton so we can stop all this shit," she mused, "I just wish she'd keep us a little more in the loop of what's happening, I kinda feel like she might be keeping secrets."

This suggestion made Bing frown. That idea hadn't occurred to her, but the bat fairy did seem particularly insistent on being vague. Even her origins were a total mystery to the girls. The prince let out a long sigh, her eyes drifting slowly closed.

"At least it doesn't seem like Lady Baphomet is acting on her threat so far. We've purified tons of anxoids and Dread in the last week and nothing's changed," Sofía pointed out with a note of hopefulness. "Maybe she isn't as strong as we think."

"Could be...but what scares me about her is how she got in your head like that," Bing said softly. "You looked so scared...and I didn't really know what to do. If she can make people hallucinate scary things like that, I don't know what we can do to combat her."

"Maybe that's what it's like inside of one of those terror masks," Sofía murmured, her brows furrowed with worry. "We really need to talk to Boo and see what she thinks is the best way to go about this."

Bing heaved a heavy sigh and rolled over onto her stomach with a groan. "Why can't we just have a clear objective? Like 'Hey, go gather all the pieces of this magical thing and the monsters will go away. That'd be nice." The girl scrunched her eyes closed tighter, her face buried in her pillow.

A breathy laugh passed Sofía's lips, and she scooted closer to her partner. Running the side of a finger down Bing's cheek left a trail of goosebumps that rose gently along the trail of her hand. After a long silence Bing turned her head to face her, warm eyes finally opening and looking through thick lashes at the girl beside her.

"You seem lost," Sofía observed in a whisper.

The observation made Bing raise a brow curiously.

"Oh?"

"In your mind," she elaborated, tracing her fingers across the girl's cheek once more and tapping her gently on the side of the head. Bing smiled softly, her gaze drifting towards the girl's face though not quite making eye contact.

"I'd like to get lost there with you."

This was even more perplexing than Sofía's first observation.

"What?"

"I wish...you'd let me in there," the chicana whispered, her own eyes downcast, "I have a feeling there's lots of beautiful things going on up there. But maybe...maybe you're scared to show people."

"I guess I'm just as bad as Boo, huh?" Bing drew in a deep breath. "I'm not used to being open, I suppose," she admitted, tilting Sofía's chin up so the two could lock eyes. "But with you...I know I'm safe. I can start. I _will_ start. I'm not afraid," she vowed in a low whisper, leaning in to press a gentle kiss to the girl's lips.

They fell asleep there, limbs atangle with one another and foreheads touching lightly. The warmth between them drew sweat to their skin, though neither awoke in discomfort. Instead they remained in their half-embrace until sunrise brushed across them.

Sofía awoke from her sleep with a start, the image of Bing disintegrating in her arms fresh in her mind once again. Her breathing slowed as she saw the girl sleeping soundly beside her, entirely untroubled. Wiping her face of sweat with the back of her arm, she turned toward her partner slowly and carefully. With a slight tremor she reached her fingers carefully towards the girl, grazing her shoulder with a feather touch. She heaved a sigh of relief as the girl remained in one piece, only stirring slightly and opening her eyes, a sleepy smile crossing her face.

"Good morning."

* * *

"So, who has plans today from 3-4?"

Sofía plopped down at the lunch table with the rest of her friends, dumping the contents of her lunch bag out in front of her.

"Sorry hun, Saanvi and Audrey and I all have practice," Bing replied apologetically, Saanvi nodding along sagely.

"And I promised I'd help out setting up some new art display cases," Peyton added, tucking a curl of red hair behind her ear.

"What's going on?" Fay asked, face smeared with ketchup from the hamburger she inhaled inhumanly fast.

"Spectrum cluuuub!" Peyton sang before Sofía could even open her mouth.

Fay dabbed at her face with a napkin. "What do you do in Spectrum Club?"

"We mostly just talk about queer issues, sometimes its just free discussion but sometimes we have prepared topics, and sometimes we get speakers and sometimes we watch movies," Sofía explained, puffing out her chest. "I'm the new president so I've gotta make my term in office the best the club has ever seen!"

"Towards the end of the year they pretty much always lose steam and just watch Rent every month," Audrey added with a wry smile, winning a snort and a playful nudge from Saanvi.

Sofía puffed up even further, shooting a poisonous look at Audrey. Unfortunately, the black haired girl was immune. "Not this year! This year is going to be great! And it'd be great if you could come! We always have a good time, even if it does get off topic," she added, sticking her tongue out childishly at Audrey whose face was plastered with an amused smile.

"Well I don't have any plans for this afternoon, so I'd love to come to your meeting," Fay replied sweetly, her pledge of attendance brightening Sofía's face.

"Meet me in the weight room!"

A look of concern and genuine confusion crossed the blonde's face. "The...weight room? How do you hold meetings in there?"

"Oh! That's not where the meetings are that's just where I will be, lifting weights on my off period to train."

"Whatcha training for?" Peyton questioned curiously, Sofía immediately kicking herself mentally for letting that last bit slip. Her eyes flickered over to Bing ever so briefly who seemed unbothered by the question, at least on the outside. She was a better actor than Sofía.

"Nothiiiing. I mean, uh, it's a secret."

Peyton raised a quizzical brow. "Are you training to be a super teenage spy for the government? Because if so please give me a heads up so I can wipe all the pirated material from my hard drive."

"Yeah, that's it. Secret government spy."

The redheads face dropped. "Dude don't joke about that stuff, you never know what weird stuff goes on in the world around us that we don't even see." The chicana laughed, tossing her hair back over her shoulder and silently praying for someone to change the subject.

"Bing do you have any idea what she's hiding?"

Looking up from her lunch, the volleyball prince chewed slowly and after a brief moment's thought shrugged as she swallowed. "I honestly don't know what she's talking about half the time."

"Hey!" Sofía jabbed her girlfriend with her elbow, jutting out her lower lip in a dramatic pout. Quickly Bing planted a small peck on the girl's forehead and flashing the briefest of smile before her face dropped again and she took another bite of her pizza slice.

"You two are too much," Peyton accused with a small smile. "A pair of dorks the both of you."

"Oh yeah and what does that make you?!"

"To be fair, I think it's safe to say everyone here is a bit of a dork," Audrey chimed in, Saanvi nodding sagely once again.

"Fay doesn't seem like much of a dork," Bing pointed out, causing the pale girl to laugh nervously.

"Ahh, I don't know. You might change your mind once you get to know me better," the angel at the end of the table admitted shyly. "Maybe at the meeting today my dorkiness will show itself!"

* * *

With the ringing of the bell, Fay went off to locate the weight room. Prying open what she assumed to be the right door, her eyes fell upon Sofía in her gym uniform sitting on one of the benches. Fay smiled slightly from the doorway, watching as the petite girl told off a much larger boy.

"...so you can just wait your turn like everyone else!" Sofía scolded, craning her neck to look the boy in the eye and placing her hands indignantly on her hips. As soon as her eye caught sight of the girl in the doorway she bounced up from the bench. "Oh, hey! Ready to go?"

The boy watched in disbelief as the girl hopped amicably off the bench and grabbed her bag, heading for the door. Peering into her backpack at her folded clothes, she grumbled incoherently to herself.

"I don't really feel like changing back into my uniform while I'm all sweaty, you don't think anyone will judge me, do you?"

Fay shrugged noncommittally, "I don't know, you are the president though, so maybe that will work in your favor," she laughed softly, "I think you look cute regardless!"

"Good answer," Sofía grinned, slinging her bag over her shoulder and leading the blonde down the hall.

The Spectrum Club met in an English classroom that was currently littered with art projects that didn't seem to have much to do with English. Mrs. Fairfax was a sticky sweet teacher known for being one of the easiest in the school, so everyone fought to get in her classes, even if it meant they wouldn't be learning much. The sweetness made her the perfect advisor for the club however, and she showed movies so often in her class that there was always a tv cart stowed in the corner in case they really did just want to watch Rent again.

"Hey Mrs. Fairfax! Thanks for getting the room set up for us!" Sofía chirped as the girls arrived, propping the door open behind them, "This is my friend Fay, she's new here."

The towheaded woman that sat at the desk in the corner of the room beamed and waved. "Welcome Fay! I hope you're liking Redwood so far!"

"I am! Sofía's been a big help too, I don't know what I'd do without her!" Fay replied, making Sofía's face light up.

"Ohh, you!" she gushed, pulling out a rolled up welcome poster from her bag and sticking it to the whiteboard with magnets.

"Yo, Fay!"

Nia held up a hand in greeting, her much-too-long sleeve flapping in the air. "Glad to see you here! I don't know anyone else from band who comes here, so now at least I know there will be at least one cool person."

"Hey! That's no way to talk in front of your president!" Sofía protested, though she held out a hand, "I'm Sofía, nice to meet you! What year are you?"

Nia took her hand while hers was still covered by her sleeve, "Nia, I'm a sophomore. I met Fay in concert band."

More students began to filter in, taking seats in the semicircle of desks while Sofía perched herself on top of a desk, her own wooden throne, at the front.

"Hey everyone! I'm glad you could all make it to this year's first meeting! For those who don't know, I'm Sofía and I'll be your president this year. I use "she, her, hers" pronouns and my favorite food is gnocci. Why don't we all go around and introduce ourselves?"

"Uh Sofía, I think there might be someone still outside," Nia piped up, looking over her shoulder at someone lingering in the hallway.

"Oh, you're right," the president murmured, waving a hand at the straggler. "Hey! You can come on in, we're just getting started!"

The boy in the hall looked up suddenly as he was addressed, and quickly scurried away down the hall. Sofía frowned, sliding off the desk and peeking out the door. "I'll be right back, I'm gonna go make sure everything is okay!"

Walking down the hall she couldn't tell where the boy had disappeared to, but rounding a corner she spotted him once again, along with something else. The boy stood, frozen in panic as a Dread stood a few feet from him, the cold from its body reaching all the way down to where Sofía stood at the end of the hall.

Shit.

With Bing at volleyball practice, Sofía was going to have to take this one on alone. Better make this quick then!

"**Nightmares nevermore, trick-or-treat transformation!"**

In a puff she had transformed, the boy startled by the sudden appearance of smoke.

"**A mischievous smile on a moonlit night, Cure Witch!"**

Leaping forward the purple cure placed herself squarely in front of the boy and the monster, landing with a satisfying clack of her heels.

"Get out of here! I'll take care of this thing!" Witch ordered, holding her arms out to shield the boy who scrambled to get away. It wasn't until she stood directly in front of it that the pretty cure realized there was something different about this Dread from all the ones they had seen before, or rather, there was something different about the mask on its tail.

Instead of the usual plain white mask with two eye-like slits, this mask was more ornate. This version had blank black eyes that almost appeared to be dripping down the face, and a black mouth lined with rows of razor-like teeth and pulled up in a twisted smile.

Witch pulled back a fist and charged towards the Dread, aiming for the mask on its tail as she swung through. The shadow creature leapt over her head, avoiding the attack entirely, much to the purple cure's frustration.

"Damn it! Too short!" she grumbled, skidding to a halt and turning around. Much to her dismay, the boy had not run far, instead choosing to linger at the corner of the wall and watch. At this point the Dread was again mere feet from the boy, and with a quick jump it placed the mask on his face.

"_I'M SCARED!"_

A thick black ooze began to dribble out from behind the mask, covering the boy's body until it formed a familiar amorphous black monster, only this time with a new masked face, and bigger too. As soon as the boy was completely covered in the goop, a red light lit up behind the bleak black eyeholes of the mask, and they focused directly on the Pretty Cure.

With a grumble two large arms grew out from the shapeless body, and the monster dashed towards the girl with arms outstretched. Jumping into the air to avoid the charge, Witch straightened out her legs and went in to stomp on the beast's face, but was caught off guard when a third and fourth arm grew and plucked her out of the air with ease and slammed her into the opposite wall.

"Shit," Witch grimaced, only to be tossed in the air and caught with another hand and slammed against a row of lockers. These new masks seemed to make the resulting anxoids much more aggressive than before, and the cure barely had time to catch her breath before she was tossed again to another hand like the thing was juggling her. Her whole body began to ache, as even with the strength of a precure she sustained quite a beating, but her focus was realigned when she heard a tentative voice from the end of the hall.

"S-Sofía?"

Fay stood down the hall, watching in horror as the beast tossed the purple haired girl around like a ragdoll. She looked different, certainly, yet Fay was unmistakably sure that this was her friend.

"Get out of here now!" Witch ordered as she was tossed again, but the presence of another seemed to catch the anxoid's attention as well, and it let her fall to the floor as it glided towards Fay. Though disoriented, the purple cure managed to get to her feet. What did the monster want with Fay? If its only concern was getting back to Frighton why did it need to bother with her?

"Let's see how you like getting tossed around!" Witch cried, running up behind the monster and grabbing one of its four arms, swinging it back over her head and cracking it face first into the tile floor. It was only mid-swing that she noticed Fay's ankle gripped in one of its hands, and frantically Witch sprinted to catch her before she too hit the ground.

"Seriously, get out of here now!" she pleaded with the blonde who looked absolutely horrified, and rightfully so. Fay only shook slightly, eyes jumping from the cure to the anxoid, and back again. Did the monster she saw in the woods last week have something to do with this one? And what did her friend have to do with all of this?

Fay scrambled around the corner as soon as the monster stood again, wrapping all four shadowy hands around Cure Witch and squeezing her tight. Gasping for air, the cure struggled against its hold, but the more she squirmed the tighter it seemed to grip her. She closed her eyes weakly, mind racing as she attempted to think of a plan when suddenly the monster's grip on her loosened and it faltered slightly, falling back and dropping her to the ground.

"Fay?"

"Not quite."

Cure Pumpkin caught Witch as she fell, smiling warmly. "You're a mess without me huh? Fay came and found me, said you were getting your ass kicked."

"These masks are different! This thing is super strong!" Witch gasped, trying to catch her breath. "Please be careful...I don't want you to get hurt…"

"I'll just wear it down, you try to get steady and we'll take care of this thing together!" Pumpkin suggested, pulling her bonewick wand from her chest and waving it at the monster.

"**Pretty Cure Jack-o-Jinx!"**

The pumpkin fireballs collided with the monster and burst into glitter while the beast roared, and Pumpkin scored a second hit to the side of its head with the heel of her boot, and a third with the end of her wand as she smacked away a hand that came down to grab her.

A second hand came flying towards her which she blocked deftly with her wand, as well as a third and then a fourth which she leapt over, landing back on the ground and firing another pumpkin for good measure.

"You're up hun," she encouraged, Witch nodding with determination as she produced her own wand from the palm of her left hand and snatching it up in her right. With now practiced ease she traced a pentagram in the air, and though she was weak, fired it with what strength she had left.

"**Pretty Cure Haunted Hex!"**

The sigil burned the blackness, the strange goop beginning to fall off in chunks until the boy it had captured was revealed underneath and the mask popped from his face.

"We need to show Boo that mask, so be careful not to touch it," Sofía murmured going to the boy's aid as Bing carefully scooped the mask into her duffle bag.

"Hey, are you okay?"

The boy sat up slowly, rubbing his head. "Uh...yeah I guess so. I feel like I just had the weirdest dream...I was so scared."

"Well if you want, there's a Spectrum Club meeting going on right now, I can take you there! I bet everyone would love to meet you."

He hesitated slightly at this suggestion, but with some newfound courage he nodded slowly, standing to his feet. "Yeah, I'd like that."


	10. Chapter 10- Rumors

The decision to neglect her duties to the Pretty Cure wasn't an easy one, but Boo was determined to do whatever she had to in order to stop Frighton once and for all. If that meant leaving Sofía and Bing to forge on against the monsters so she could study the portal, then that was exactly what she would do. Days she spent at the old gnarled tree, scouring its every crevice, every branch and every stray twig until she had its composition memorized. Still, she could not find a way to use it to get to Frighton.

What was more troubling than the secrets of the tree was her inability to remember clearly what had transpired before she had awoken in the cave. The fairy kicked a small rock across the barren ground at the base of the tree, her frustration manifesting in small tears in the corners of her eyes.

Skidding easily over the dry surface, the rock tumbled into the small crevice that Boo had awoken from all those days ago. The fairy turned a pink ear towards the crack, but did not hear the rock hit the ground despite her sensitive hearing. Curiosity tugged at her, bringing her to the edge and sticking her head inside to hear more clearly. At last she heard the stone clack against the floor of the cave, several long seconds after it had dropped. How deep did this cavern go?

The bat prepared to dive in and find out when she heard nearing, familiar voices.

"I knew she'd be here," Sofía murmured, walking with Bing to the distinctive landmark. "Boo, we really need to talk." The fairy pulled her head out of the hole and turned to face the girls, a sad look on her fuzzy face.

"I'm sorry I've been absent, boo…"

"That's okay, we have been a little worried about you though," Sofía said gently, sitting down on the dirt patch and scooping the fairy up in a tight hug. "Everything going okay?"

Boo nodded solemnly, "Yes everything is fine. I'm just not finding the answers I'm looking for, boo. And I still can't remember...where I'm from." She heaved a heavy sigh, looking at Bing who clutched a duffle bag in her hands. "What is in there, boo? It's emanating really strong Frighton energy."

Bing sat beside Sofía and carefully unzipped the bag, revealing the new terror mask that sat inside. "We didn't touch it since they disintegrate if we do. At least, the old ones did," Bing explained. Boo picked up the mask carefully in her little paws, examining it closely.

"This has a lot more fear in it, boo...what was the anxoid that it created like?"

"Way bigger, and stronger. More aggressive too, the old ones just kind of flailed around like they were scared but this one actively chased and tried to hurt me," Sofía explained quietly, "And it also went after other people besides me, it tried to attack my friend. I don't think I could've handled it if Bing hadn't shown up when she did." She cast a thankful look at the other girl who smiled encouragingly in return.

The fairy tucked the mask under her wing where it disappeared, dusting her paws off. "I'll take a look at it when I have time, boo. Right now there's...something else I need to check out." Her pink eyes traveled back towards the crevice, and Sofía frowned a bit.

"Okay...but promise you'll come home to sleep tonight? I worry about you out here on your own."

The words of concern brought a smile to the fairy's face, and she nodded. "I promise I will!"

* * *

"Hey, do you want to come over? My parents have a work dinner tonight so you could hang out for a while," Bing offered as the girls emerged from the forest.

"Ah, sorry I already promised Fay we could meet up and work on our physics homework together. I think I'm free tomorrow though!"

Though slightly disheartened, Bing smiled, "Yeah! That sounds good. I'll see you tomorrow then, make sure you text me so I know you got home safe."

Sofía nodded, raising a hand in farewell as she turned the opposite direction of her girlfriend, "I will! See you tomorrow!"

* * *

Waking up the next morning Bing looked like a zombie. Her hair in disarray far too wild to tame she opted to throw it up into a messy bun, and didn't even attempt to do anything for the giant bags under her eyes. Saanvi widened her eyes at the state of the prince as she shuffled to the car, plopping heavily into the passenger seat.

"Wow, someone didn't get enough sleep last night," she observed, pulling out of bing's driveway.

"Yeah...I was worried. Sofía was supposed to text me when she got home last night but I still haven't heard from her...and she always at least says goodnight," Bing admitted, slumping in her seat. "I tried calling once but she didn't answer."

"Mmm, that's weird. Maybe she was busy?"

"She was studying with Fay, but I doubt she was there all night," Bing said, uncharacteristically fretful. As soon as they parked the volleyball prince made a beeline for the half wall where her girlfriend always loitered with her friends before school. Much to her surprise, neither Peyton nor Audrey were there, but Sofía was, as was Fay who sat beside her on the half wall.

"Oh, hey Bing!" Sofía chirped cheerfully, Fay wiggling her fingers in greeting.

"Hey...what happened to you last night?" Bing asked softly, trying not to betray the anxiety that had ravaged her chest all the evening prior. "I tried calling…"

Sofía immediately clapped a hand over her mouth, eyes wide. "Oh, shit I'm really sorry!" she insisted earnestly. "I was over at Fay's longer than I anticipated, and my phone died! I didn't get to plug it in until I got home and by then I was so tired I went straight to bed."

Bing closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief, a small smile spreading across her parted lips. "Is that all? God, you had me worried," she admitted, crossing her arms over her chest indignantly. "And now I look like shit today!"

"Sorry I kept her so late!" Fay apologized. "I don't really ever text anyone so my phone hardly ever dies, so you can always text me too if that ever happens again. And I have some makeup in my bag if you want, but I think you look fine!"

"I'll be okay, but thank you for the offer!"

* * *

For the rest of the day, Bing regretted not taking Fay up on her offer. Every new room she stepped into, she felt as though all eyes turned to her and quiet whispers erupted amongst her classmates. Being well known around school the volleyball prince was used to a certain level of attention from her classmates but this...this was unusual. Did she really look _that _bad?

As she moped in her last class of the day, Colette sat beside her, casting a weary, grey-eyed glance her way every so often before finally leaning over and tapping the forlorn girl on the shoulder. Bing lifted her head from her desk, locking eyes with her gaunt classmate.

"Is it true?"

The vagueness of the question frustrated Bing, and she had to take a deep breath to stop herself from snapping at the girl. "Is what true?" she asked calmly.

"I heard Sofía left you for Fay."

This made Bing sit up straight in her seat, eyes wide. "Wh-what? Who told you that?" Colette frowned, sleepy grey eyes downcast as she tapped absently on her desk.

"No one. I've just been hearing people talk about it all day."

Bing scowled, looking down at her own desk as her mind reeled. Who had been saying that? That had to be the real reason everyone was looking at her so strangely...did they know something she didn't? But Sofía said they were just doing homework together...she wouldn't lie straight to her face...right?

A pang of nausea struck her stomach, and the volleyball prince picked up her bag and walked straight out of the classroom. Her mind reeled as she shuffled towards her safe haven, the unoccupied library storage room that shielded her from the rest of the world. Once arriving she collapsed into the old broken armchair, hiding her eyes in the crook of her elbow as she tried fruitlessly to steady her quick rabbit breaths.

This was why she needed to be a prince, a level of distance between herself and everyone else. With distance, she never had to feel this way, like she might throw up her heart onto the long forgotten carpet at her feet. Clutching her stomach, the girl curled into a ball in the old chair and closed her eyes.

* * *

When she finally opened her eyes and stepped out into the hallway, all was quiet. How long had she been in there? Bing rubbed her face, bleary eyed. She must've taken a good long nap, as not a sound was heard in the hallway. Checking her phone, she saw it was six o'clock. She also saw three texts from Saanvi wondering where she was, and if she needed a ride home, and two from Sofía asking the same.

Running her fingers through her messy bangs and exhaling in exasperation, the girl was about to tap a message to her mother asking to be picked up from school. What stopped her was catching sight of someone in the cafeteria all alone as she passed, a tall blonde with a pale pink smile who beckoned her over as soon as her blue eyes caught Bing walking by.

With narrowed eyes and stiff arms the prince approached the girl, who acted like she had no knowledge of the rumor that cycled around the school.

"Hey Bing! What are you doing here so late?"

"I was working out," she fibbed, crossing her arms over her chest. "What are you doing here?"

"My bike still needs to be fixed, so I wait here for my parents to be able to get me. I've been just hanging out after school every day and working on homework and stuff, just to get it done."

"I thought you and Sofía worked on stuff together?" Bing questioned, suspicion rising.

"We did, but it was mostly because she needed help. I had already finished most of it," the blonde admitted with a small smile.

The answer made her falter in her conviction that this girl was conspiring to steal her girlfriend, and Bing sat in one of the plastic chairs with a huff.

"Well...did you hear the rumor going around today?" she asked directly, feeling that dancing around the question would only drive her up the wall.

Fay paused a minute, shaking her head slowly. "No, I don't think so. Did something happen?"

"You didn't notice everyone talking about you?"

The blonde's eyes widened, and she shook her head again. "No definitely not...what are they saying about me?" There was a sadness in her face now that Bing hadn't seen before, and she looked to the prince imploringly. "I know I'm new, and that this thing happens to new kids in school but...I've never been to a real school before, so I don't really know what to do about it…" she began biting her nails nervously, looking down at her shoes.

Bing knitted her brows together with worry, suddenly feeling a pang of guilt. Opening her mouth to speak again, she was cut off by a loud clattering from the other side of the cafeteria. Looking up from her lap, her eyes quickly locked on a dread that flailed its legs after having slipped on ruminating pudding smeared on the floor. The monster caught Fay's attention too, which started the girl into standing.

"D-do you see this too?" she asked quietly, backing away as the shadowy figure regained footing.

"Yeah...I need you to stand back, okay? I can handle this."

Fay looked bewildered, and as Bing produced her Smoke Bon-Bomb the blonde scuttled back against a far wall.

"**Nightmares nevermore! Trick or treat transformation!"**

"**A warm smile on an autumn night, Cure Pumpkin!"**

The orange cure's eyes locked on the mask at the tip of the monster's tail, one of the new smiling masks rather than the plain white ones she had been accustomed to. This one was markedly more sinister with its wide vacant eyes and toothy grin, and Pumpkin wasted no time in summoning her bonewick wand from her chest.

Two seconds from blasting her fiery pumpkins at the creature, she faltered and reconsidered. Last time, attacking the beast itself turned it into something bigger and markedly more disgusting. She would have to be more careful this time around, especially since she was working alone. Without Sofía she didn't have any purification powers, and as she charged the creature she figured the only option she had was to destroy the mask.

The dread turned its head to the cure as she ran, brandishing her wand like a bat. As she swung the fox monster jumped, landing deftly on her shoulder and feeling almost weightless as it leapt off behind her and scurried towards Fay with its terror mask raised.

Wide eyed, the blonde held her bag in front of her and stood defensively as Pumpkin scrambled after the monster that made a beeline for the other girl. The dread wasn't making it very easy to fight cautiously.

"**Pretty Cure Jack-o-Jinx!"**

The cure fired a flaming pumpkin from her wand to blast the creature away from Fay. As it had the first time she tried attacking a dread, the beast began to bubble and grow in size. A large eye opened in the center of its face and it took off towards Fay once again, now the size of a large dog.

"Look out!"

Pumpkin leapt in between the dread and the girl who still held her backpack out before her like a shield. The larger size earned the beast more strength, and it grasped the obstacle's ankle, swinging the cure into an adjacent wall with relative ease. She cried out on impact, sliding down to the floor while Fay came face to face with the monster. It seemed to fly across the floor, moving smoothly and quickly towards her with the mask poised.

"Get out of here!" Fay yelled, swinging her backpack with all her might as the dread jumped towards her. The bag made contact with a satisfying smack, sending the beast flying. Running to Pumpkin's side, she knelt down with concern. "Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine," Pumpkin insisted, standing slowly to her feet again. "You shouldn't let it get so close, these things are dangerous." As if on cue, the cure's orange gaze caught sight of the monster lunging once again towards the pair, and she thrust out her wand defiantly, launching another fiery pumpkin at the mask on its tail. The beast twisted in the air, moving the mask from the line of fire and instead connecting with its black shadowy body and flying backwards.

Once again the beast bubbled and expanded with the impact until it was the size of a bear. Pumpkin swore under her breath, looking around uncertainly for any ideas.

"Does it want to put the mask on me…?" Fay asked quietly.

Pumpkin nodded, "I need to try to destroy the mask before it can put it on someone. But if I don't hit it head on it just gets bigger."

Silently Fay took a few steps towards the dread, much to Pumpkin's dismay.

"What are you doing?!"

"It won't think to protect the mask if it's about to place it! Aim near my head...and please don't miss."

The dread rumbled forward as the girl appeared to be unprotected, and Pumpkin uneasily wiped the sweat from her brow. Her aim would have to be spot on, another miss and it would only make the monster bigger, or it could accidentally hit Fay. With a hiss the dread swung its long tail out towards the blonde girl, the malicious grin mere inches from her face when a bright light shot past her with pinpoint accuracy.

A loud screech echoed through the empty cafeteria, and Fay fell backwards as the monster thrashed. Slowly the mask burned away as the beast roared and flailed until it was nothing but a pile of ash. Once the mask was gone the monster slowly began to melt. The magic that had protected it from her previous attacks now gone, it suffered each blow that had previously been thrown at it until it too was nothing but black ooze haphazardly splattered across the floor.

De-transforming in a puff of smoke, Bing fell to her knees, breathing heavily while Fay sat up slowly. Looking cross-eyed, the blonde noticed a strand of hair that had a small flame at the end of it, and she suffocated the fire with a pinch of her fingers.

"Why...did you risk yourself like that?" Bing asked as she regained her breath, her rapidly beating heart finally beginning to slow to a regular pace.

"I trusted you," Fay replied honestly, pink lips pulling into a weary smile. "Thank you...those things have been watching me for days. I felt like I was seeing things, and no one believed me."

Bing frowned, running her fingers through her bangs to pull them off her sweat speckled forehead. Fay trusted her...and yet Bing had spent a huge portion of her day not trusting Fay, or even her own girlfriend. With a heavy exhale the prince stood, holding out a hand to help the other girl to her feet.

"I'm really sorry...I was a little suspicious of you before," she admitted softly. "I heard a rumor that you were going to take Sofía away from me and I didn't even ask either of you what was going on…" Fay frowned, but said nothing. "But that was the rumor everyone was whispering about today."

This made Fay knit her brows with concern. "I can promise you I wasn't even thinking of doing that," she assured her gently, "And I didn't hear anyone whispering about it either. The only gossip I heard today was about how everyone thought your messy bun was really cute."

Bing's eyes widened. "Wh-what? But I swear everyone was…" Thinking back on it now, no one had been whispering maliciously. How had she become so convinced that they were? In fact, the only one who even mentioned the rumor all day was Colette. It was like as soon as the grey-eyed girl put the idea in her head, the fear it was true had wholly consumed her. "Oh my god...I can't believe I…"

"It's okay," Fay comforted softly, resting a hand on her shoulder. "I'd be on edge if I heard that too. It's a scary thing to think about losing a loved one like that. I know we don't know each other that well but I promise I'd never do something like that, you have my word. I mean...you and Sofía and the gang at lunch are my only friends here, I wouldn't ever jeopardize that."

Bing finally smiled a bit, "I guess trust is something I'm going to have to work on. Maybe you can tutor me in that," she laughed softly.

"Well I think it gets easier when you know someone better, why don't you come over for dinner? I'm sure my family would be glad to have you. They like knowing I've got friends."

"That sounds great...plus you deserve to know what the hell is happening."


	11. Chapter 11- Suspicion

The midday sun poured through the gaps in the window shutters, casting bars of light across the three girls who sat in Sofía's bedroom while her father working on hemming Fay's uniform pieces. In spite of her quiet protests Sofía insisted that the angelic giant bring her clothes over so she wouldn't be periodically assaulted by safety pins. Besides that, it was an opportunity for the girls to hang out, and introduce Fay to Boo.

After the incident involving Bing's unusual bout of paranoia, they had clued Fay in to the unusual goings on. She knew more than they anticipated, claiming now to remember the monster in the band room, the mysterious appearance of Lady Baphomet, and the dread in the hallway. Boo was hesitant to speak with anyone who wasn't a Pretty Cure about matters of Frighton, and as per usual was itching to get out of the house and head back to the portal, but with some prodding she agreed.

"That's all we know so far, boo," the fairy concluded, "I think what happened to you was just like what happened to Sofía," she added, turning to Bing. Sofía frowned at the memory of her strange hallucination, rubbing the fabric of her skirt idly and saying nothing. "Your fears may have been spiked by a dread nearby, so you had a panic, and started seeing or hearing things, boo."

Bing, who sat beside Fay on Sofía's bed, ran her fingers through her hair, twirling a strand around her pointer. "I guess so. I don't remember seeing anything, but maybe it decided to hide out for a while. It did look like it wanted Fay specifically, but that doesn't really make sense."

"What's weird about it wanting me?" Fay asked curiously, pulling her legs up to her chest and resting her chin on her knees. Despite the numerous encounters with this strange creatures, the way they functioned still wasn't making much sense to the newcomer.

"Normally they go after people who are really scared," Bing explained, "But you were brave enough to be bait, so..." she shrugged, clearly at a loss.

Sofía's honey brown eyes lit up suddenly, and she sat up a little straighter in her seat. "Remember what Lady Baphomet told us though? She threatened that bad things would happen if we didn't stop purifying anxoids and destroying dread. Maybe that's part of her punishment, attacking our friends? Or attacking brave people?"

Boo rubbed her little paws over her face, mussing up her mauve fur as she let out an exasperated groan. "You two will have to be extra diligent then, boo. Once I figure out to get us to Frighton we will go there and cut things off at the source. It'll be easier if we don't have a giant army to fight, boo."

The two Pretty Cure exchanged worried glances, and Fay looked to the bat fairy with concern. "Do you need help figuring it out? I can probab-"

"No."

All three girls were surprised by the fairy's insistent cut-off.

"I can handle it, boo. Besides, if I accidentally activate it and get pulled in I'll be better off than any of you since I've been cured of fear, boo."

"Cured?" Sofía asked incredulously, leaning back in her chair.

"Yes. I'm never afraid, which is what makes me the best fairy to guide the Pretty Cure to defeat Frighton, boo!" the fairy replied indignantly, taking a quick moment to stick her tiny tongue out at the chicana. "But I should get going back there, boo. I think I'm close to a breakthrough." She turned, bowing curtly to Fay, "It was nice meeting you, boo."

* * *

Walking quickly with eyes wide and darting from side to side in fear of anyone watching her, Colette crossed the expanse between her house and the storage shed out back. She wore a large black windbreaker, clutching her stomach as she pried the door to the shed open with a slow creak. Slipping inside, the gaunt faced girl shut the door behind her and unzipped her coat, setting a bag of dog food on the ground. Tiny cracks of light crept across the floor between the uneven wooden panel walls of the shed, but lying just beyond the light was a hard to distinguish black mass curled into a tight ball.

"I got you some food," the pale girl whispered, dragging the bag over towards the creature. "This will be better than table scraps." Reaching up to the peg board where all the tools hung, Colette grabbed a pair of shears to cut open the corner of the food bag, and poured some kibble into her hands, holding it out to the black ball.

There was a pause, the girl's eyes locked expectantly on the creature. A loud sniff broke the silence and slowly the dread raised its head, pointed nose twitching as it smelled the dog food in the girl's outstretched hand. Suddenly, its wide mouth snapped open with a wet smack and a long, black, serpentine tongue licked up the food from her cupped hand.

Beaming, Colette reached out a hand and pet the dread delicately between the ears. The touch made the animal stiffen, backing away and arching its back, which revealed a smattering of small bandages around its legs. She retracted her hand quickly, turning back to the bag.

"Sorry, I'll let you eat. Do you like it?" she asked softly, pouring out another handful. "I wasn't sure if you would like cat food or dog food better, but dog food came in bigger bags." The dread quickly licked up the next handful of food, swallowing it in a swift gulp. Tentatively, the shadowy monster moved a little closer, pressing its cold nose against the girl's hand, its fluffy, bare tail wagging slightly.

* * *

"Hey...so I've been thinking…"

Sofía spoke slowly, scratching her head nervously. The sun had begun to set, pulling with it the blues from the sky and leaving a trail of orange in its wake. The three girls started to wander their way back from the Red Hollow main street where they had spent the latter half of the day. Fay's skin was pinkened with a light sunburn, indicative of a day well spent outside with her friends, though a little sunscreen would likely have been a good idea. Bing and Fay each held a half melted and half consumed ice cream, while Sofía hadn't touched hers, and instead gazed down at the ground ahead of her as the melting treat dripped over her fingers.

"Yeah?" Fay prompted, licking the ice cream residue off her lips, but missing the patches that had somehow become smeared far across her cheek. "What about?"

"I feel like we've been having a really good time together and uh...I'd really like it if we could maybe...be a thing? I mean, Bing would you be up for the three of us…?"

Bing's eyes widened, and she looked from Sofía to Fay, a light pink wash coloring her cheeks, albeit much less painfully than the pink that burned across Fay's face and shoulders. "Uhh, yeah I think that'd be fun...if she wants to I mean."

The blonde was positively beaming, stopping her stride suddenly and pulling the two girls beside her into a tight embrace. "I'd love to."

Once Fay loosened her grip, Bing pulled back with a small smile, though Sofía stayed close, her whole face red. "Sof, you okay?"

Sofía buried her face in Fay's shirt, mumbling into the fabric after a moment of silence, "I think I smushed my ice cream on your shirt."

* * *

When the three strolled into school the next Monday, all eyes turned towards them. The handsome volleyball prince, the angelic new girl, and the adorable every-girl that brought them all together. Their friends all gushed at the news, and the school population at large seemed supportive of the trio, save for a quiet, mouse-haired girl who leered from a distance.

Not only were Bing and Sofía still together, but even the new girl hadn't been swayed by her warning. Was she one of them now too? A lying costumed miscreant who preyed on animals? Colette made a point to avoid the three of them for the day. She'd have to come up with a new tactic to stop them, and soon.

No one seemed to notice the gaunt girl as she slunk silently from her classroom, headed for the computer lab where the newspaper club had its meetings. She was pleased to find it empty, and she pulled up a chair at her usual desktop, booting it up and connecting her camera. Slim fingers flew across the keys with quick taps, and her eyes didn't budge from the screen, staring with hardened resolve. She had to let everyone know. Those girls were not who they said they were.

* * *

As soon as the last bell chimed Colette was out the door, her skirt whipping at her legs in the late summer wind. She flitted effortlessly between the bodies that trickled out into the schoolyard, swift and unnoticed as always. Once she broke out from the crowd of people she picked up her speed to a brisk trot, cutting through underbrush and hopping an open space fence. The girl stopped only briefly to pet a calf that she passed, but trucked on quickly to check on her own animal companion.

Arriving on the backside of her yard's fence, she tossed the hidden bag of dog food over before climbing over herself. The storage shed door creaked open with a labored groan and Colette pulled it carefully closed behind her.

The little black quadruped was nowhere to be seen, and she faltered slightly as she set the bag of food on the ground.

"Hey..where are you little guy?" she called softly, looking under one of the benches for her little rescue project. No luck. Behind the tarp in the back? Not there either. Feeling a heavy leaden sadness weigh on her heart, the girl sat on the floor and pulled her knees to her chest and attempted to will herself not to cry.

A soft chirp caught her attention, and as Colette lifted her head to look, a dark shadow in the corner of the shed peeled off the wall, tail wagging slightly as it approached her. The girl stared dumbfounded as the dread approached her, only coming back to her senses when it nudged her with its soft nose.

"Wh-what was that? You scared me," she breathed, petting along its spine. "What was that you were doing?" The dread turned its head, blank face staring pointedly in the direction of the dog food.

"Oh! Right."

Pulling an empty tupperware from her lunch, she placed it before the creature and poured it full of food. Its pitch black tongue quickly darted out to lick up the food with ravenous hunger. As it ate, Colette busied herself checking underneath the bandages she had placed around the dog-like animal, finding the wounds it had when she discovered it to be healing quite well.

Carefully, she produced a pair of scissors and cut off the gauze, the snips bringing the dread's attention to its back.

"Don't worry sweetheart, you're doing much better!" Colette soothed sweetly.

* * *

_It had been weeks by this point. Colette had climbed over the fence of her back yard to the vast expanse of open space that bordered her house after successfully completing her first day of the school year. She had seen the new calves on her way to school, and the temptation to get a look up close was too much for her to resist. Walking quickly with her back hunched, the girl took care to ensure she wouldn't be spotted. It was trespassing sure, but all she wanted was to see the animals. There was nothing wrong with that, right? _

_Before the pale faced girl could locate the cows however, her grey eyes fell on something else, something entirely peculiar in the untamed grass. It was scruffed up and limping through the field, and it looked as though it had suffered a traumatic event. Perhaps it had spooked the cows and had been trampled. Later, after taking photographs of those girls attacking a similar animal in the school, she changed her theory entirely. The animal lover in her couldn't bear to leave the peculiar looking thing alone. Careful coaxing eventually earned the creatures trust, and she was able to sneak it into the shed unnoticed and bandage it with supplies from the first aid kit her family kept in the bathroom. Perhaps now she would have the confidante she had always wanted._

* * *

Even after it was bandaged she kept it hidden away in the shed, and even shoplifted a bag of dog food (it looked more like a dog than anything else, though she was entirely unsure of the species) in order to keep it fed. She had always wanted a pet, after all.

There was still the little problem of her parents, but the storage shed was secluded enough to hide the little tenant until it got better. And yet, now that it was, the thought of letting it go made her heart ache. Then there was the matter of those girls. That didn't help either. She knew they had been attacking these creatures. She had photo evidence, and now there was another person in their group. What if she let her new friend go? Would they attack it like they had in the past?

Colette found herself reaching instinctively for the dread, pulling it close in an affectionate embrace and letting her tired eyes drift closed. The animal sunk comfortably against her, as though it was melting into her arms with a satisfied exhale.

So content in the the presence of her little animal companion, the girl didn't hear the steps on the gravel outside, only the loud creak of the door as it opened. Her eyes flew open to see the looming shadow of her father filled the door frame, and she shrunk away in surprise.

"What are you doing out here? Why didn't we see you come home?"

Colette stood abruptly, backing into a corner as she began to shake with worry. "I-I just came straight here this animal was hurt and I-"

"Why the fuck is this thing in my shed?" her father interrupted. The dread arched its back, emitting a low hiss in the direction of the man. "Get over here, your mother and I need to have a talk with you inside."

Her legs carried her uneasily forward, and her father kicked the bag of dog food to the side. The act of aggression seemed to spur the dread, which opened its wide mouth and hissing loudly and lunging towards the man, black spit dripping from its jaws.

"No!" Colette pleaded, reaching out and plucking up the animal, holding it close to her chest.

"Get that fucking thing out of here!"

The girl barely had time to register the man's raised hand, flinching away as he began to swing. The dread squirmed in her arms, and before the man made contact the animal turned its head and sank its teeth...into Colette's arm.

* * *

The explosion startled the trio of girls walking home, but it was the loud screech that made Sofía and Bing exchange a worried glance.

"Do you think…?" Sofía breathed, Bing nodding solemnly as she lifted her gaze to the horizon.

Fay shifted uncomfortably, wringing her hands as she too looked off in the direction of the commotion. The thoughts racing through her mind made her stomach queasy, and she took a moment to steady herself, looking from Bing, to Sofía, and back again.

"I...really want to go with you."

"What? No you've gotta stay safe!" Sofía insisted, "We can meet you back at my place when we're done."

The willowy blonde faltered. "But...we're a team and I want to support you," she murmured, any semblance of conviction in her voice drowned by meekness. "I won't get in the way, and I can take care of myself, and-"

Sofía opened her mouth to protest once more, but Bing spoke definitively.

"I trust you."

Fay smiled gratefully, a shaky sigh passing between her lips as Bing produced her Smoke Bon-Bomb. "Ready, Sof?"

With a bang the two disappeared in a puff of multicolored smoke, reemerging as dress-clad Pretty Cure warriors.

Witch took one of Fay's hands with a small smile, while Pumpkin took hold of the other.

"You ready?" Witch asked with a grin. The blonde gave both hands a tight squeeze and nodded in agreement, and with an energetic bound the trio flew through the air.


	12. Chapter 12- Melancholy

The trio of girls soared through the air on a powerful bound, the untransformed human doing her best not to show her nervousness as she clung tightly to the two hands that supported her. Landing in a wide open space, it wasn't hard to see what had been causing all the ruckus that caught the group's attention in the first place. The creature was huge, burly in build and at least ten feet tall. It was impossibly black like all other creatures from Frighton, but unlike an anxoid its face was not covered by a white mask.

Instead, it looked like an overgrown dread with a wolfish face that held rows and rows of teeth in its gaping jaws, and a tail that thrashed furiously behind it. Its arms were thick and ending in large hands with long claws that curved from the end of its fingers. The hind legs it stood on were equally intimidating, with a mysterious black fog that swirled around its clawed feet.

A short distance away a man huddled against a fence while the beast stared him down. Fay's eyes widened in shock, and she immediately took off running towards him.

"You two take care of that thing, I'll take care of him!" she called as she sprinted. Witch and Pumpkin exchanged a quick glance, nodding affirmatively and dashing towards the monster. As she ran, the orange cure produced her bonewick wand from her chest, taking care to make note of Fay's location before launching the first attack.

"**Pretty Cure Jack-o-Jinx!"**

The fireball blasted at the beast, knocking it off balance as it made contact. Expertly timed, Witch collided with the monster with a hard punch from the side, sending it crashing to the ground and away from Fay who knelt beside the man by the fence.

"Sir, you really should get somewhere safe," she insisted seriously, extending a hand to help him up.

"That thing did something to my daughter! Colette was hiding something in our shed and it bit her and they turned into a monster!"

Colette? Fay looked at the beast from over her shoulder. How on earth… The crash as the creature fell to the ground brought her back to her senses, and she pulled the man to his feet. "Sir, please, I promise we can take care of this. We will help, we can get your daughter back," she vowed, looking Colette's father in the eye. The monster roared, which was enough to send the man running back for his home.

Fay turned her attention to her partners once she was certain Colette's father was out of harm's way. As the hulking beast clamored to its feet, the pair of Pretty Cure came side by side, looking to each other with uncertainty.

"What do you think?" Witch asked, taking a defensive stance as it rose up once again. Pumpkin knit her brows together, keeping a careful eye on the beast.

"Hard to say, we don't even know what it is…"

"It's Colette!"

Fay came running back towards the magical warriors, her ponytail whipping behind her and her face stern and solemn, a look the two weren't used to seeing on her.

"It sounds like she was harboring a dread in their yard, her dad said it bit her and they turned into this."

"It...bit her?" Witch questioned incredulously, looking at the beast. "We've never seen a dread turn someone by biting them."

"And we've never seen something this big," Pumpkin added.

The three watched cautiously as the strange monster that used to be Colette let out a roar and lumbered forward.

"Split up!" Witch cried, darting quickly to the left as the monster lumbered forward. Pumpkin took the straightaway, and Fay kicked off to the right, headed for the street. The beast whipped its head from side to side, grunting as it changed direction and galloped towards Fay on all fours.

"You stay away from her!" Pumpkin shouted, launching a blazing fireball to deter the chase. It skidded to a stop and held up a massive arm, shielding its head from the attack and letting out a pained hiss as the glittering flames made contact. Now limping but not deterred the monster continued its pointed pursuit of Fay who hid behind a roadside tree. With its uninjured hand the thing that was Colette gripped the tree, claws tearing through the bark and rooting themselves in the trunk. With minimal effort, the beast uprooted the tree, a startled Fay nearly tumbling into the hole that remained.

"Fay!" Witch flew through the air, digging her heel into the back of the monster's head as she landed. Yowling, the monster swung the tree up over its head, batting Witch out of the air like a fly. Pumpkin wasn't far behind, leaping at the foe as her partner collided with the ground. As it swung again Pumpkin kicked off the trunk, and pulled her fist back for a right hook. Suddenly, the monster's head swung around nearly 180 degrees, and its wide mouth snapped open to reveal its needle like teeth. Deftly the beast caught her arm in its mouth, shaking its head violently before opening up and sending the orange cure flying.

Fay stood firm, though unease crept its way to her face as the monster turned back to her and raised the tree above its head once again.

"PRETTY CURE!"

The voice caught Fay's attention, and turning her head she saw the pink bat fairy flying rapidly towards the beast. The monster didn't seem to care, bringing down the tree with both hands. The girl braced herself with arms over her head, but to her surprise the impact never came. Peeking up uncertainly, as though seeing it would make the tree come down on her, her eyes fell on the fairy who pushed back against the beast's makeshift weapon with teeth gritted.

"Fay, you need to leave, boo!" the fairy demanded, straining under the weight of the tree.

"Not without Witch and Pumpkin!" she retorted stubbornly, taking the momentary opportunity to dash out from the path of the tree and towards Witch who struggled to sit up. "Come on, we've gotta go. It's too strong for us," Fay said gently, scooping up the purple cure in her arms and trotting briskly for the road. The warrior was limp in her arms, and though her eyes were open they were clouded with pain.

"Get...Pumpkin..." she instructed, slipping her little legs from the girl's grasp and lowering herself unsteadily to the ground.

Boo had begun to dive bomb the monstrosity, which swung wildly with its giant weapon, and was for the moment preoccupied. Fay sprinted in the direction Pumpkin had been tossed, and soon spotted the orange of her skirt against the grass where she lay, cradling her arm.

"We've gotta get out of here, this is too much for us right now," Fay explained, guiding the cure's good arm across her shoulders and helping her stand.

"What about...that?"

"We can't risk it right now. There's a difference between being brave and being stupid," Fay insisted seriously, beginning to guide her to where Witch sat beside the road. Her blue eyes were trained carefully on Boo who continued to attack the monster brazenly, possibly giving credence to the claim that she was fearless. However, with her fearlessness came recklessness, and Fay gasped as one of the beast's hands shot out and finally plucked the bat from the air, throwing it to the ground.

"Boo!" Pumpkin screamed, catching the monster's attention. As its body swung so did the tree grasped still in its claws, sweeping low enough across the ground to collide with both girls. Things felt as though they were moving in slow motion for Fay, whose eyes widened as the incoming attack neared the girls. Thinking quick, she let Pumpkin's arm drop from her shoulders, and staggered her feet to stabilize herself for when the hit landed. Instinctively, she held both arms in front of her defensively, ensuring she was between Pumpkin and the makeshift club.

Just as before she braced herself for impact, but none came. This time, the tree hit what seemed to be some kind of force field, which emanated from a glittering wrapped candy that appeared suddenly before her in a flash of light.

"F-Fay you...you're..." Boo sat up slowly, reaching out for the girl who stood awed, and the other who clung to her side.

"Fay you're a Pretty Cure!" Pumpkin finished, "You need to say-"

**"Nightmares nevermore! Trick-or-treat transformation!" **Fay cried, recalling the incantation from the other two girls. A rush of energy coursed through her as she reached out to grasp the candy before her, and as soon as she clenched it in her hand the energy grew tenfold. With this newfound energy she lobbed the smoke bon-bomb, and when hit the ground she found herself immediately surrounded by a cloud of blue glittering smoke.

As she rose the girl felt the distinct sensation of a calm washing over her mind and her heart. The clouds of blue smoke billowed around her body, taking the form of little sprites that huddled around her. The embrace turned her clothes into smoke as well, and a spiderweb pattern traced itself along her now bare torso, creating a black leotard that snapped into place. The smoke sprites circled rapidly around her, leaving a trail of dissipating smoke that slowly took the form a white ruffle around her shoulders.

More sprites grew out from the cloud Fay floated in, creating more smoke garments that solidified in little puffs. Two came bearing a pair of grey gloves with lace trim, four more creating a full white petticoat while another brought a light blue high-low skirt into being with a puff of smoke. Two sprites hugging the girl's torso created a grey corset, and another swirled around her ponytail, making it fuller, longer, and substantially bluer.

Fay added her own special touch with a pale blue ribbon she pulled from the smoke, tying it in a petite bow on her head. The shimmering wrapper of the bon-bomb fastened itself to her chest as a loose blue bow, and as she fell to the ground little clouds burst away from her feet to reveal grey booties with lace and a light blue wedge heel.

The girl landed with her legs shoulder width apart, bending at the waist and stretching her arms out in a wide arc before sliding her feet together and snapping upright in a salute.

**"A ghostly chill on a frightful night, Cure Spectre!"**

Pumpkin hugged the new cure tightly with her good arm. "Spectre! If you can handle the monster I'll take Boo to Witch." The blue cure nodded sternly, dashing off with renewed vigor. The beast swung its tree weapon at the new attacker as Pumpkin ducked away and scooped up the injured fairy. A loud crack sounded through the field and Pumpkin and Boo both looked up in surprise to see Spectre had snapped the tree in half with a kick.

"Summon your courage...to produce your wand, boo!" the fairy called out hoarsely as the orange cure carried her to safety. Spectre dodged another attack by the monster which roared and gnashed its teeth at her, beginning to flail with wild abandon. Closing her eyes, the girl searched herself for the courage to continue fighting, and save her partners from this monstrosity. She placed both gloved hands at the base of her neck and slid them upwards. Opening her mouth the end of the wand appeared, and she pulled it out without any troubles like some kind of magical sword eater.

The monster took a swing at Spectre with another frustrated roar, and she dodged quickly with her wand brandished before her. **"Pretty Cure Cobweb Curse!"**

A beam of bright light shot from her wand at the burly arm of the beast, which quickly secured it to the ground as the light separated into the thin tendrils of a spiderweb. The monster tugged on its trapped arm in a vain attempt to free itself, and though the web of light stretched slightly, it never gave. With haste Spectre shot another time and trapped its other arm, causing it to flail aggressively against the bindings.

"Way to go Spectre!" Pumpkin cheered, helping Witch to her feet, "I bet you can purify it now!"

Witch nodded, though she leaned heavily against Pumpkin as she summoned her own bonewick wand. Just as she raised it to trace the pentagram needed to summon her spell, the monster suddenly stopped its struggling and hissing. Falling silent and still within its confines, slowly it began to melt. Thick globs of darkness like fresh tar splattered on the ground as the great beast crumbled. The trio stood speechless, watching the spectacle in confusion.

"...Did we win?" Spectre asked uncertainly, craning her neck to look at the pile of sludge that steadily grew.

"If you see Colette in there, pull her out," Pumpkin called as she observed from a distance, holding onto Witch tightly. Colette was nowhere to be seen, even as the last of the monstrosity collapsed, liquified, into the pile. The strange fog that surrounded the beast's feet now wafted in curling tendrils from the goop like steam. Spectre kneeled carefully beside the sludge, running her gloved hands through the muck in search of the girl that was supposedly trapped inside. Her fingers found nothing, and quickly the goop began to soak into the ground until there was nothing left but the lingering dark fog.

"What...happened?" Spectre asked, bewildered and looking at her team. Sofía detransformed, her wounds seeming to heal as she did so, though she still fell to her knees in dismay.

"It took her."

Boo stared in awe, clinging to Bing who had followed suit and detransformed as well. The girl rested a hand gently on Sofía's shoulder, kneeling down beside her while Fay approached worriedly. "What do you mean?"

"Sometimes...when we lose track of someone or take too long they disappear," Sofía explained quietly. "We've never seen it happen right before us though."

"It all makes sense, boo," the fairy breathed, attracting the attention of the other girls.

"What?" the trio asked in unison.

"I...I think I might remember how to get to Frighton, boo. And...the reason I came to find you all is because I remembered things."

"What things?" Bing asked expectantly.

"I remembered that...I used to be a Pretty Cure."


	13. Chapter 13- Countess

"So...you were a Pretty Cure?" Sofía asked as the trio walked to Bing's house with their morale as faded as the sunlight that sank behind the horizon. The bat fairy floated ahead of them with concentration wrinkling her face.

"I think so, boo. Fighting that monster...and seeing it disappear...I don't know something just clicked for me, boo." She looked back at the girls who all stared at her intently. "I think I can remember more if I try to tell the story. But we should wait until we are inside safe, boo."

"Oh good," Fay chimed, "That'll give us time to get snacks!"

* * *

Snacks in hand and pajamas on, the three girls all piled onto Bing's bed while the solemn fairy floated down to the foot of the mattress, seemingly lost in thought. The pink bat caught the expectant gaze of her team, bringing her back to attention once more.

"I don't really know where to start, boo," she admitted, looking down at her little feet.

"Start from as far back as you can remember?" Bing suggested, dunking her hand into the bowl of popcorn in her lap. "Maybe start with when you became a Pretty Cure?"

Boo nodded, scrunching up her nose as she attempted to recall the earliest of these remembered memories. "Well...my name was Cure Countess…"

* * *

Milena had what she considered to be an entirely ordinary life for a 18 year old girl. She went to school, she took care of the house and made dinner while her father worked, and spent her evenings with him in front of the tv, or working on homework. Her grades were average, she was simple looking but pretty, she had a couple friends, and lived comfortably. Everything was wholly unremarkable until one late autumn day when the dark haired girl took a shortcut to get out of the cold sooner rather than later.

Trudging through shrubbery, Milena trained her eyes cautiously on the ground before her to avoid any missteps. Instead of spotting a gopher hole, or some other similarly benign obstacle, her black eyes fell upon what she initially assumed was a skunk, black and white and furry.

The girl squealed and stumbled backwards through the greenery, frantically clawing at a tree branch to help her up as she desperately attempted to avoid being sprayed. That would absolutely ruin her uniform, not to mention her day. Clearing the bushes and plopping down in the grass to catch her breath, Milena rested a hand on her chest to feel her heart as the rapid beating began to slow back to a normal pace.

The rest was short-lived however, as rustling ahead of her signaled the foul creature's advances. An awkward crab crawl backwards was all the girl could manage in her panic, and even then her arms became trapped too far underneath her and she fell back onto her shoulders. What emerged from the bushes however, was unexpected. It was indeed black and white and furry, but it wasn't like anything she had seen before.

This thing looked like a puppy in most respects with a fluffy tail and four little paws, but there was one major difference. Or rather, there were three. The puppy bore three heads. The one on the right was black with red eyes and seemed to be dozing off, slumped slightly to one side. The one on the left was white, with blue eyes and perked ears, cocking its head at the sight of Milena who's head tilted similarly in confusion. The head in the center was grey, with purple eyes that immediately focused on the girl.

"Hello there, we are Cerberus!" the grey head quipped light-heartedly. Milena leapt to her feet, feeling as though ants were crawling over her skin as fear shook her, sending her backing frantically into a tree.

"Y-you what?" she stammered, staring down her nose at the little dog as it took a few steps towards her.

"We are Cerberus!" the white head repeated in a bright, friendly voice. "I'm Cera, that is Berry, and on the end there is Russ." At the mention of his name, the black head lifted suddenly, red eyes alert and looking around.

"Wuh? Huh? Is this the girl?"

"I don't know but surely she can give us a place to stay," Berry, the middle head, responded curtly. "Do you have a dwelling nearby?"

Milena blinked. "Uh, I have a house?" she offered uncertainly. "Why?"

"We would like to request accommodation somewhere in this area," Cera explained. "We have just made a very long journey to this planet and need to rest."

The girl's lips pressed into a thin line, raising a brow in disbelief. "This...planet?"

"Yes, Earth," Russ barked. "We just got here and we're tired. Take us home, human. And feed us."

"I...don't think so," Milena mumbled, beginning to skirt her way around the tree.

"But we are here to help save your planet! Surely you have enough space for us to stay the evening. All of the dwellings we have seen here have been quite spacious," Berry added quickly.

"If you let us stay, we will assist you with your physics homework!" Cera chimed in.

Milena clutched her backpack. "What? How-"

"Cera can sense things. And three heads are better than one, surely a little human level physics won't be hard for us to figure out for you," Berry replied sweetly.

The girl looked down at the ground, bewildered. This dog was offering to do her homework...that was new. But her grade in the class was beginning to suffer...and besides they were small, it couldn't be that bad. With a sigh she knelt down and shook her head, offering her opened backpack to the dog.

"Okay fine, get in and don't make any noise! You'll freak my dad out."

* * *

The menu for the evening had breakfast for dinner, and after enjoying pancakes and scrumptious bacon with her father Milena curtly excused herself from the table, claiming not fictitiously that she had homework to do. She heaved her bag off the floor and carried it upstairs, dumping the three headed dog out onto her bed.

"You are a lot heavier than you look," she mumbled, collapsing into a beanbag chair on the floor beside her bed.

"We are actually quite light, we aren't even full grown," Cera responded indignantly.

"When we're grown up we will be big enough to eat humans," Russ barked.

"You eat people?!"

"No, there aren't even humans where we live. But Russ is right when we are full grown we could," Berry mused. "And we will be much heavier."

Milena crossed her arms and bounced her feet impatiently. "Well what is all this about saving the earth anyway? Where are you from?"

"Frightooooon!" Russ howled, earning a glare and a hush from his body-mates.

"Don't be so loud. The father might hear you," Cera barked, turning up her nose.

"We are from another world called Frighton," Berry explained, ignoring the heads on either side of her. "It is a world that helps to manage and regulate the fear in the universe."

Milena blinked slowly, subtly pinching her arm to ensure this really was real. Sure enough, it looked like she had taken in a three headed horror puppy refugee. "Okay...why are you here?"

All three faces fell, each side-eyeing the other without so much as a whisper.

"Something...has gone wrong."

Sitting in still silence, the girl didn't dare ask for an elaboration herself. She wasn't so sure she wanted to hear the answer, let alone bring it upon herself.

"We have come here looking for a Pretty Cure. They are legendary warriors that can help us regain control over the situation," Cera elaborated. "That's why we're on earth."

"But we weren't fully prepared to come," Berry continued, "So that's why we need you to let us stay here...since finding lodgings out in nature has proved...difficult."

"We got chased by a raccoon!" Russ interjected.

"So many thanks for giving us such a lovely room and a large bed to stay in."

Cera dipped her head in thanks, but Milena bristled, "Hey wait a minute you don't get to stay in my bed! You can sleep on the floor!"

* * *

The subsequent days went by without much irregularity. Besides the magical alien living in her bedroom, and the sudden, drastic improvement in her grades, not much had changed in Milena's notably mundane life.

It took weeks until something strange began to occur.

Milena sat at the table with her chin in her hand and bouncing her legs hard enough to shake the entire table. Dinner for two sat untouched, and her dark eyes were trained on the clock on the wall, each tick tensing her muscles tighter as though her tendons were wound up like guitar strings with the rhythm of time until she threatened to snap.

"Isn't your father usually home by this time?"

Berry's voice carried quietly down the steps as the cerberus poked its heads around the corner.

"Yes." Milena stood finally, pulling the phone off the wall and dialing his work, "He calls when he's going to be late. I can't believe he would just leave me here like this."

Cerberus frowned threefold.

"Maybe he got caught up in something?" Cera offered hesitantly.

As the answering machine picked up at her dad's office, Milena hung up abruptly and trudged to the front door, pulling on her shoes.

"Are you going?" Russ asked as they walked swiftly down the stairs.

"Stay upstairs. If he comes home he can't see you," Milena ordered, the three folding their ears back in worry.

"We want to help," the trio murmured in unison.

"You can't help with this."

She was out the door without another word, and the heads exchanged worried glances.

"Do we…?"

"Follow? I don't…"

"Know, but she…"

"Needs help."

The cerberus crept outside, catching sight of the girl in their mind's eye and following the pull of her heart. When they finally spotted Milena she was sitting on a bench outside a rundown looking pub, head in her hands.

Careful to avoid detection, the black and white creature darted quickly under the bench, hiding in the shadow it cast and peering up at the girl through the slats of the seat.

"Did you find him?" Berry asked quietly.

Milena didn't move, not even to remove her hands from her face, muttering "No" against her skin. "He was here but he left half an hour ago."

"It's hard to be scared, I-"

"I'm not scared!" Milena growled, finally pulling her hands away. "I'm angry!"

"Sometimes anger comes from fear," the creature murmured softly. "And that's okay-"

"I'm not afraid! Leave me alone," the girl shouted, standing quickly and taking off across the street. With a sigh the creature gave chase, though their little paws could not carry them as fast as Milena's long legs.

Catching up to her they also spotted a man in the distance, curled up on a grassy boulevard with his face covered. Milena loomed over him with tears barely clinging together at the edge of her eyes.

"Dad, get up! You need to get home this is embarrassing," she urged in a hushed voice, though the anger was palpable despite the quiet tones. The man didn't move.

"Is he injured?" Cera asked as they approached the girl, and she shook her head furiously.

"No. Come on dad," she knelt down and grabbed his hand, prying it from his face and attempting to tug him to his feet by sheer force. Milena fell back as she let his hand slip, though instead of scolding once again her eyes widened at what she saw.

Her father's eyes were completely white and glazed over, and he took trembling breaths with what looked like black smoke seeping from his mouth on exhale. As she stared on in horror the smoke became more opaque, taking on the appearance of a black smokey snake crawling from his mouth on the tide of his breaths.

"Milena! Stand back!" the cerberus cried in unison, leaping between her and her father.

"What is wrong with him?!" she cried, tears finally skating across her cheeks.

"He's infected," Russ began.

"This is what we came here to stop," Cera continued.

"But we haven't found the Pretty Cure," Berry finished.

"I-infected with what?"

"Fear. There are some on Frighton who are angry about the stigma we face as regulators of fear…"

"They wish to make Frighton more prestigious, and to do so they will infect the universe with fear..."

"And then make the worlds pay for them to regulate it again."

Milena stared ahead in terror, watching as the black snake of smoke gained substance and began to slither towards her and the cerberus.

"Many worlds have retaliated with force; they all have fallen but they did much damage."

"Frighton is nearly uninhabitable now. Our people cannot thrive there anymore."

"We managed to escape to find help...but many have not been so lucky."

The girl stood to her feet again finally, backing up against a tree to stabilize herself as her knees shook. "You want someone to fight for Frighton? It's all your fault this is happening!"

"No! We are not all bad. We want those responsible to face consequences just as you do!"

"But we need someone to bring peace to all the worlds. No one will listen to us!"

"For the sake of our innocent, and those that have been victimized by our tyrants!"

Suddenly the snake lunged, opening a mouth bearing long black fangs. Milena ducked, her legs giving underneath her as she braced her arms in front of her head. With a clang, the snake's fangs lodged into a bright pink shield that appeared around the girl.

"A-are you doing this?" Milena asked as sweat began to trickle down her back, the smoke snake struggling to get its fangs free.

"No, you are!" Cera cried joyously.

"You are the Pretty Cure!" Russ barked.

"Take this, quickly! Say 'Nightmares nevermore, trick-or-treat transformation'!"

All three heads of the cerberus barked in unison, summoning a shimmering wrapped sweet that appeared before Milena. Though her fingers shook, she wasted no time reciting the incantation. The candy suddenly exploded and surrounded the girl with smoke, and when she reappeared everything about her seemed to have changed. She wore a full black skirt with a pink bustle, pink gloves, and a grey corset. A spiderweb print leotard covered her top half, as well as a hot pink ascot that poked out from her high black collar. Her hair had become pink as well, her bangs swooping over one eye and the rest of her hair in a side ponytail that resembled a bat wing. She touched down to the ground with a clack of her grey thigh high boots, and instinctively her arms swung out to the side like wings, her fingers hooked like claws.

"**A flutter of wings on a hallowed night, Cure Countess!"**

There was no time to think as the snake lunged immediately for the girl, but she blocked the strike deftly with both forearms in front of her. The monster continued its attempts to catch her off balance, but with each snap of its jaws the pink haired warrior defended herself swiftly. Catching it by surprise, she managed a quick jab of her own, followed by a kick that sent the serpent crumpling to the ground.

"How am I supposed to get rid of this?" she asked, catching a breath and looking back at Cerberus, each head seeming equally enamored with the warrior.

"You need to combat the fear with courage!"

"Let your courage manifest itself!

"Find the strength in your heart!"

The smoke snake reared again, but Countess dodged its lunge, grabbing its body as it sailed past her and whipping the monster in aggressive circles above her head.

"Or you can do that," Russ muttered.

Cure Countess brought her hand down to her side, still spinning the snake rapidly until she released it into the air, hurling it through the sky. With unprecedented power she too kicked off from the earth and sailed after it. She felt a tingling of potential in her fingertips like tiny firecrackers that radiated their shimmer through her hands. Following her instinct she bent over to touch her toes, tracing her fingers up along her body until they extended above her head where a white handle appeared.

Grasping it firmly she pulled the rest into being, a long white staff like a bone, topped with bat's wings. Grabbing hold with both hands she finally approached the altitude of the monster she hurled into the sky with the weapon at the ready.

"The Vampire Staff!" Cerberus' heads cried in unison from below, all heads craned up to the sky after their magenta warrior.

She swung the staff at the snake, though instead of being knocked back it wrapped its long body tightly around the end, locking eyes with the Cure at the other end. Taken aback, Countess twisted herself in the air, aiming the staff down towards the ground as words were pulled effortlessly from her throat.

"**Pretty Cure Ghastly Guillotine!"**

Immediately a blade of pink light shot from the end of her staff towards the ground, carrying the monster along with it. Cerberus darted out of the way as it neared impact, and as soon as the blade of light struck the ground the serpent was sliced in half. There was a brief pause as Countess landed back on earth as well, but soon the foe dissipated into smoke with a hollow puff, the tendrils carried away quickly on the breeze.

"Our savior has come!" Cera cried in excitement as Cerberus trotted back out into the open.

"Wonderfully executed!" Berry commented.

"Great job!" Russ howled enthusiastically.

There was a soft groan that brought the newly fledged warrior back to reality, her pink eyes falling on her father who began to sit up, rubbing his head. Hastily Milena detransformed and ran to his side, dropping to her knees and helping him sit up.

"M-Milena?"

"Yeah dad, it's me," she whispered softly. Now that her Pretty Cure facade was gone it seemed that so too was all her courage, and she had to fight to keep her hands from trembling against her father's back.

"Where...am I?"

"In the woods...I came looking for you and found you passed out here."

"Oh Millie I'm so sorry…" Suddenly he wrapped her in a tight embrace, and it was he who shook against her as he cried silently. "I don't know what came over me...I know I shouldn't have but I just had to-"

"Dad."

He pulled away, his brow furrowed in concern as his dark eyes clouded with years. The man said nothing with his mouth, but spoke volumes with his expression.

Seeing this look on the man who raised her was enough to instigate tears from her own eyes, and Milena threw her arms tightly around her father as she began to cry, smiling slightly at the ridiculousness as she choked out her words.

"We need to go home and reheat the salmon, or it'll taste like shit."


	14. Chapter 14- Homecoming

"IT'S THIS WEEK?!"

Sofía's face sank between her hands, pushing her cheeks up and in to create a pouty fish face.

"How could you forget when homecoming is? It's our senior year!" Peyton reprimanded, shaking her head and waving her fork at her fish-faced friend.

"I've...been busy," Sofía mumbled, casting a look from Bing to Fay.

"Do you all have plans to go?" Fay asked with a cheery smile. "I'd really love for you all to be there! I've never been to a school dance before."

Peyton's expression softened dreamily as her fork lingered just outside her mouth. "I asked a guy in my math class! Do you guys know Devon?"

Bing shook her head, and Sofía's fish face became somehow poutier and her eyebrows pinched together.

"You mean that guy who's really into aliens and illuminati stuff?"

She nodded, popping a bite into her mouth with a dreamy sigh.

"Sounds perfect for you," Bing commented with a wry smile. "What about you guys?"

Audrey ignored the question, fishing around in her lunch bag for more food while Saanvi simply shook her head and pulled her hair over one shoulder.

"Saanvi, you aren't going?" Bing asked, brows raised. "I thought you were planning on wearing that sari your mom got you last year since you didn't get to wear it?"

The girl shrugged, standing abruptly. "I've gotta go talk to coach, I'll see you at practice."

The group watched as she strode away briskly without another word, and Bing frowned as her eyes fell back to her lunch. Audrey twisted her hair through her fingers, beginning to bounce her legs in a way that made the entire table vibrate with her nerves.

"You're not gonna go either?" Fay asked, turning her attention to the shaking girl that remained unspoken for.

Audrey chewed on the inside of her cheek nervously, looking down at her lunch bag. "Well uh, mm. I was, mm, gonna ask Saanvi if she wanted to go with me."

Peyton stood bolt upright, slamming her hands down on the lunch table. The other girls all jumped, staring at the redhead with looks that varied from slight surprise to abject terror.

"Then you go after her! I bet she'll change her mind if you asked!"

Abandoning her lunch the redhead rounded the table and motioned for Audrey to stand, which she did with notable hesitation, leaning away from the girl whose enthusiasm was palpable.

"We're gonna go follow her! Take me to where the coach's office is, I'll tell you how to play it!"

That left the trio alone at the table, looking blankly at each other.

"Well. I guess I should ask to make sure, will you guys come with me?" Sofía asked with a small smile.

"Of course!" Fay exclaimed, "I'm so excited. What about you, Bing?"

Bing's face looked sullen and blank, but the question pulled her attention back to her partners. "Oh, yeah I'll go. I'm just worried about Saanvi."

"Why's that?" Sofía questioned.

"I think she's not going because she's embarrassed about her scar. She loves dances and getting dressed up...and she was so excited about her sari last year but she was in the hospital last spring when prom came."

Sofía scoffed exaggeratedly. "Scar? What scar? I've never seen a scar!"

Bing shot Sofía a stern look, and the smaller girl fell quiet. "I don't think it really helps acting like it's not there. Everyone knows she has a big scar, I mean it goes onto her face it's not hard to see," Bing said seriously.

"She's still just as beautiful, either way. Maybe she just doesn't think so," Fay said softly.

"Exactly. She used to always wear her hair up for games but now she never does."

"Well maybe then Audrey asking her to be her date will help!" Sofía chimed hopefully. "We should help her come up with a great idea for asking her that will make Saanvi feel really special!"

Fay smiled, "Well we better catch up to her and Peyton then!"

* * *

"You already got her to change her mind?!"

The girls huddled around Audrey after school as she pulled her gym bag from her locker. "Yes," the little goth replied simply.

"How did you ask?" Fay questioned, clasping her hands together, "Was it romantic?"

"I said 'Saanvi, I want to ask you to go to the dance with me' and then she said 'oh okay' and then we both went to class."

Both Sofía and Fay looked less than impressed with this account of the story, and the chicana crossed her arms over her chest. "That was the best Peyton could give you to work with? She's usually a lot better at that kind of thing, it's a miracle Devon said yes if that's how she's going about it these days," she muttered.

"Peyton was not there. I told her to go away," Audrey explained with a shrug, shutting her school locker and beginning to walk towards the gym to get changed for practice, the trio of girls following behind her like a row of ducklings.

"Did Saanvi seem excited, or nervous?" Bing asked cautiously, but Audrey could only reply with a shrug as they followed her into the locker room.

"I don't know, she smiled. So I guess she was happy."

It wasn't unusual to see Audrey or Bing in the locker room, but a few of the athletes turned in surprise when Sofía and Fay followed in behind them. Audrey had begun to change out of her uniform when Saanvi herself walked in, surprised to see the group as well as she crossed the room.

"What's going on in here?"

"They followed me in here to ask me questions about you. And now they are watching me change," Audrey said simply, the three girls behind her all freezing in embarrassment.

Saanvi stared at the immobile trio, Bing being the first to move. She walked stiffly over to her locker, swinging the door open a little too enthusiastically, "Not me, I'm just here to get changed for practice!" she insisted. Sofía and Fay felt a second pang of betrayal, forcing smiles as they scooted towards the door.

"We were just...wondering…" Sofía spluttered, making motions with her hands in an attempt to coax out some semblance of an excuse.

"If you did something new with your hair!" Fay finished quickly, shooting her fist into the air victoriously.

Saanvi eyed the two suspiciously, then looked down at her own hair for a moment. "No...I didn't do anything to it. Same as usual."

"Wow, nothing? You'll have to give us tips sometime your hair always looks great," Fay insisted with the hope that flattery would solve their predicament.

"Yeah! Maybe you can give us tips for our homecoming hair!" Sofía added.

"Well sure. I'm going with Audrey, so we could all get ready together."

Both girls gasped dramatically. "You're going to homecoming now?! I'm so glad to hear that!" Sofía insisted, beaming.

"You already knew that," Audrey pointed out, "You guys are being weird."

'_This girl has no chill; she is going to be the death of me,' _Sofía thought wryly, a smile still plastered to her face as she grabbed for Fay's arm.

"Well we better get going, I gotta take Fay home, have a good practice, bye!"

As soon as they were out the door, Sofía's smile dropped and she heaved a heavy sigh. Fay tugged nervously at her uniform's bow. "At least she's going now, right?" she offered hopefully.

Sofía nodded. "You're right. New plan: make Saanvi feel special while we get ready so she'll be confident for the dance!"

* * *

The scramble to find dresses to wear between practices and club meetings was tiresome, even for a set of seasoned Pretty Cure warriors. The night of the dance came faster than expected, and Sofía had begun hurriedly tossing clothes and makeup into a duffle bag as Boo watched from her perch on top of the girl's vanity mirror.

"I hope you are still prepared to be on the lookout for The Dead, boo," the fairy murmured as the girl threw a few more items in her bag, tapping her chin and running through the list of things she needed. "Why aren't you getting ready anyway?"

"I'm going to Bing's house to get ready because Andres' girlfriend is coming over here and I don't want to drive them to the dance," Sofía muttered indignantly. "Besides, it'll be fun to get ready together, and we've gotta be extra sure Saanvi feels good about herse- pajamas!" The girl scuttled off to throw a pair of pajamas into her bag. "Promise you'll be good while I'm gone? Maybe hang out here, take a break from all the time at the creepy tree. Just don't let Andres or his girlfriend see you moving around. Though I wouldn't be offended if you gave them a little scare of some kind, maybe make her think the house is haunted so they'll hang out at her place instead of here." She reached up to pet the bat fairy on the head, "See you tomorrow!"

* * *

Five people in one bathroom wasn't a plan the group had thought out very well. Luckily, Audrey had done her makeup and hair at home before she came so she sat just outside the door while the others bustled around, passing brushes and curlers and makeup back and forth between them.

"You know Saanvi, your hair looks super great already," Sofía commented, the other two in the bathroom murmuring their agreement. "Are you gonna do anything with it or just leave it down?"

"I was thinking of braiding it, actually," Saanvi admitted, putting her mascara down and pulling out the bag of hair ties and bobby pins she had brought along. "If anyone needs bobby pins let me know, I have about a thousand!"

"Wow, a braid huh? I bet that will be gorgeous!" Fay gushed, her own blonde tresses clamped into a curler.

"That's so brave of you to do an updo like that," Sofía added. Saanvi looked warily at the others, frowning a bit as she pulled her hair up and began to braid, the scar that crept across her shoulder and up onto her cheek now plainly visible.

"Hey Saanvi?" Audrey piped up, "Where did you get that scar?"

The triad of girlfriends widened their eyes, turning to look at Audrey who didn't seem to notice, and then to Saanvi who kept her eyes trained on the mirror in front of her, teeth clenched on a bobby pin in her mouth.

"Oh, it was a grease fire," Saanvi said simply, "I was cooking while my parents were out and uh, I didn't realize you weren't supposed to put them out with water," she laughed quietly, "So learn from my mistake, just smother them!"

"It's a common mistake," Bing insisted hurriedly, "I wouldn't beat yourself up over it."

"That sounds really scary," Fay added.

Saanvi expelled an exasperated sigh, finishing up her braid in silence.

_Audrey shouldn't have brought that up, now she's in a bad mood, _Sofía grumbled internally, looking at her friend in the mirror who didn't seem to realize anything was wrong.

"Hey, when everyone's done, I brought my tripod and my camera so we can take a bunch of pictures!" Fay announced, turning off the curling iron and hopping over to her bag to get away from the tension in the bathroom.

Each girl's outfit was as varied as they were, with only Audrey and Saanvi actually matching their outfits, which everyone made sure to croon over. Saanvi had braided her dark hair, and wore a decorative red, black, and gold sari with simple black heels. Audrey matched with black dress shirt, pants, and shoes, and a pop of color with a red tie that tied in well with her heavy, dark makeup. Fay went the vintage route in a drapey rose gold dress and tight, pinned up curls that made her look like a dame straight out of the roaring twenties. Her shoes were dainty, but the heel was anything but, and she towered over the others. Sofía wore a loose boho lace dress that popped against her tan skin, with little brown ankle booties for prime dancing comfort. Then there was Bing, who looked positively regal in a simple navy blue dress with nude shoes, and a sweetheart neckline that certainly drew Sofía's eye.

Spilling out of the car once they arrived, the group garnered a fair amount of attention from those milling about outside, eyes following them like those of haunted house paintings.

"Do you think they know we're seniors?" Sofía asked in a hushed whisper, hardly able to contain her joy at being ogled.

"Maybe. But it could just be Bing's boobs and Fay's legs," Saanvi snorted with a cheeky grin as Bing's face pinkened and Audrey giggled.

"Or it could be you!" Fay insisted, "You look extra beautiful tonight. I think you win best dressed."

Saanvi didn't respond to the compliment, instead handing over her ticket and trudging through the gate, "Let's go get a table to set down our stuff at."

The room was stuffy and dark, with tables dotting the back and a dance floor at the front. A small stage rose up in the front, laughably small in the giant warehouse of a room, where the DJ sat perched and where the homecoming royalty crowns and sashes were displayed. Saanvi placed her purse down at a table near the back, signaling to Audrey that she was going to get drinks as the rest of the girls filed in.

"Wow, its nothing like I imagined it would be," Fay admitted breathlessly, looking around wide eyed at the student-made decorations and the undulating group of dancers.

"How so?" Bing asked with a small smile, "Hopefully better, not worse."

"Well I never thought I'd have a date to a dance, let alone two so that's nice," Fay laughed, "But it's a lot more...grindy."

Bing and Sofía laughed as Saanvi approached with two cokes, passing one over to Audrey and pulling up a chair.

"Aren't you gonna go out and dance with us?" Sofía asked, taking both Bing and Fay's hands to lead them out to the dance floor.

"Nah, Audrey and I are gonna sit and talk for a bit," the girl replied, pulling her braid over her shoulder and crossing her legs as she sipped delicately from her can.

Sofía frowned. "Are you sure? I mean it's pretty dark out there, I bet no one would even notice if you went out there!"

The can clanked down against the table forcefully, and the girl in the sari stood up, brows knit together tightly and a staunch frown weighing down her lips.

"Look. I don't know what's wrong with you guys, but you are driving me crazy! Can't you just leave me alone for like, two seconds?!"

"We were just trying to help," Sofía explained, looking concerned.

"Did I ask for any help?!" Saanvi demanded.

"No, but-" Fay began.

"Then why did you think I needed help?"

"We were worried you were embarrassed about your scar, and that's why you didn't want to come to the dance," Bing elaborated meekly, unusually taken aback by her friend's outburst.

Saanvi rubbed her temples slowly, taking deep, slow breaths while the trio held theirs. "You know what? I was worried about my scar. I was worried that people would see it and start fussing over me! Which is exactly what has been happening. I don't need help, and I don't want any. I said yes to Audrey because so far she's been the only person acting normal towards me all week! So if you'll excuse us, we're gonna sit here and talk, okay?"

Slowly the three girls nodded and shuffled noiselessly towards the dance floor, though no one had begun to dance, nor did they even look at each other during the long period of silence between them.

"Well we fucked that up," Sofía laughed weakly. The other two nodded solemnly. A scream cut through the room and revitalized the group who quickly became alert as the sound of the girl's cry echoed through the room.

"Help! I'm scared! What's happening?!"

Following the sound of the voice the girls came upon a girl huddled in a corner, a boy looking on dumbfounded at the dread that stood mere feet from her trashing its mask-topped tail with malice.

"We can't transform in front of all these people," Fay whimpered, though she immediately produced her Bon-Bomb.

Bing nodded, "The bathroom is right there, come on!"

Nia entered the bathroom moments later with the intention to check on her makeup when she began to cough, finding the room filled with smoke. Suddenly all three bathroom stall doors burst open, and the girl stared dumbfounded at the unusually clad heroines who dashed past her out the door.

"**Banishing fear with the power of courage, we are Spooky! Pretty Cure!"**

Much to the Pretty Cure's dismay, the dread had already placed the mask on the girl, and the anxoid it created shook as long arms grew from its body. The other students at the dance began to scream, and waves of people lurched towards the door as the anxoid let out an inhuman screech.

"There's so many people in here," Pumpkin murmured worriedly. "I'm not sure I should use my wand."

"Leave it to me!" Spectre assured with a smile, dashing towards the monster. With an effortless twirl the blue cure kicked the anxoid back into the wall, and the other two were close behind, each taking an arm and pinning the monster down. Leaping into the air, Spectre produced her wand from her throat, aiming carefully at the writhing mass.

"**Pretty Cure Cobweb Curse!"**

A beam of light shot from her bonewick wand, splintering off into tiny tendrils that shrouded the beast in a net of light while the Cures who secured it darted out of the way.

"Nice job!" Witch cheered, changing direction with Pumpkin to double punch the mask with a resounding crack.

"My turn?" Pumpkin asked, pulling her wand from her chest and aiming for the mask.

"**Pretty Cure Jack-o-Jinx!"**

The pumpkin fireball hurled towards the anxoid and collided with a burst of fiery glitter, but with the impact the shimmering webbing that secured the monster burned away. The monster realized this, and quickly it thrashed both arms, fingers sharpening into shadowy claws as it batted the Pretty Cure away. The girls crashed into the stage, and the anxoid lurched forwards towards the group of people backed up against the walls as everyone attempted to force their way through the overcrowded doorways. It turned just shy of the crowd however, and eyed Saanvi, who had hidden behind the table, with a beady stare.

"S-someone help!"

"Don't you dare!" Pumpkin cried as she hurled herself across the room, smashing into the anxoid and tackling it to the ground. Spectre followed, digging the heel of her boot into the back of the beast while Witch charged across the floor with her wand in hand. Quickly the purple cure traced a five pointed star in the air, lowering her wand toward the struggling anxoid.

"**Pretty Cure Haunted Hex!"**

The screeches of the anxoid slowly died down as the blackness melted away from the body of the girl within, the white mask popping off from her face. Spectre crushed the thing under her foot, and the three detransformed to help the girl up.

As per usual, no one quite remembered exactly what had transpired, at least not those who remained in the area after the attack. The girl was clearly shaken up, but explained she had suddenly become embarrassed of dancing with her boyfriend in front of everyone, and when be dragged her towards the dance floor she began to panic, and that was all she could recall.

"I'm sure it's hard when someone you care about pressures you like that," Sofía comforted softly. Her boyfriend hurried over, hugging the girl and apologizing profusely. Slowly Saanvi approached the girls as well, Audrey close behind.

"There you guys are," Saanvi smiled slightly, "I have something I want to say."

"Us too," Sofía admitted, Bing and Fay nodding insistently.

"We're really sorry about bugging you and making a mountain out of a molehill," Fay said earnestly.

"And that we didn't ask you if you were okay," Bing added.

Saanvi's smile grew, and she fiddled shyly with the end of her braid. "I understand, I'm sorry too. I should've asked you guys to stop sooner, and I shouldn't have yelled. I know you were only doing it because you care," she admitted, "But you were being really obnoxious," she laughed.

People had gone back to dancing, almost like nothing had even happened. With one hand, Saanvi reached and intertwined her fingers with Audrey's, and she extended the other to the group of girls.

"So, wanna dance?"


	15. Chapter 15- Change

Author's note: Trigger warning for brief transphobia in this chapter

"Look out, we're going to crash!" Fay shouted, tires squealing as the red toy car skidded sideways across the floor. The evasive maneuver wasn't enough however, as a second car came flying straight into the side with a loud 'kaboom' as the bigger car began to bounce on top of its victim. Fay's younger brother, Tyler, began to giggle as he mercilessly bounced on his sister's vehicle.

"Now all your guys are gonna get crushed!" he cried, Fay reaching behind her to grab another toy from her brother's box.

"Not if sky shark has anything to say about it!" she announced triumphantly, a plastic shark swimming suddenly through the air and grasping Tyler's car.

The boy's eyes went wide. "Whaat? Why is sky shark attacking me?!"

"Sky sharks eat cars, of course," Fay said simply, providing wet munching noises for the shark as it jabbed at the car. "Yummy."

Vibrating in her pocket made the girl set down the plastic avian fish and pull out her cell phone. "Oh shoot, I forgot! I was gonna go meet up with Sofía and Bing for a study session. How about we continue this tonight?"

Tyler pouted, bushing blonde hair from his eyes. "What?! Whyyyy?! You always spend so much time with those girls!"

"They're my girlfriends," Fay said with a smile as she stood, "We have a lot of fun together. Maybe at my birthday party you can get to know them better."

"No thanks. Girls are weird," Tyler insisted with a scowl, crossing his arms and avoiding eye contact with his sister.

Pulling her jacket from the closet, Fay laughed softly, "I dunno, we're not too bad once you get to know us."

"You don't count, you're not even a real girl," Tyler accused, the words freezing Fay in her place. Each syllable crept its way into her chest, weighing down her limbs as she finally managed to pull her jacket on.

"That wasn't very nice," she said quietly, opening the front door and casting a sidelong glance at the little boy on the floor. "Goodbye, Tyler."

* * *

"I don't understand any of this," Sofía pouted, "Thanks so much for the help, Fay."

"No problem!" the blonde chirped, "You were close, you just messed up some of the unit conversions along the way."

Boo sat perched atop Fay's head, looking down at the homework sheet on the table. "I was never any good at science either, boo," the fairy admitted. "Good thing we've got Fay on the team to make up for the two of you."

A pencil bonked the fairy in the head, the projectile launched from Bing's direction though the girl didn't bother to look up, and Sofía let out an audible humph.

"I think we're all good at different things," Fay commented, attempting to smooth any ruffled feathers, "I might be good at sciences but Sofía is really good at talking to people, and Bing is so confident. I'm not good at either of those things," she sighed wistfully.

"I think I'm good at all those things, boo," the bat said with a toothy smile, puffing out her furry chest.

Another pencil bonked her on the head, and this time Bing looked up. "You'd better shape up, this is the last pencil I have and I need to get this done," she warned the fairy.

"By the way, I'm having a birthday dinner this week, and I'd love if you guys can make it," Fay piped up.

Sofía gasped, "Oh a party! Which day?"

"It's not really a party," Fay admitted sheepishly, rubbing her shoulder, "It's more just a family dinner, but I want you guys to come too. It's gonna be the day before my birthday, since I've got band practice the night of and I don't wanna show up sweaty to my own birthday dinner."

Bing pulled out her phone, flipping idly through her calendar, "So Tuesday then? I can do that!"

"Me too! I wouldn't miss it for anything!" Sofía sang, "I'll even bring Boo along."

"Did you even ask if Boo wanted to come along, boo?" the fairy asked with a begrudging pout.

Fay reached up and pulled the bat fairy from atop her head, nestling her in the crook of her arm and petting her stomach, "Please will you come? It won't be the same without you."

The petting caused the little pink bat to begin to sink into her arm as she relaxed, a contented smile wiping away any traces of sass. "Oh alright, boo. But only if I get some food, I don't actually like hanging out in Sofía's bag while you all have fun boo!"

"Who all is going to be there?" Bing inquired, subtly glancing over to Fay's homework sheet and scribbling down answers on her own.

"Just you guys, my parents, my brother, and maybe my aunt and uncle if they can make it!"

Sofía smushed her cheeks together, hardly able to contain her excitement, "Oh your little brother is so cute! I'm jealous, mine used to be cute but now he's just an ass."

Fay laughed quietly, beginning to pick absently at dirt under her nails. "Yeah, he can be a bit of a stinker, but he's pretty cute."

"How old is he again?" Bing asked, her leg beginning to bounce rapidly under the table.

"He's seven," Fay responded, "But don't worry, he'll probably spend most of his time with my aunt and uncle, he won't bother you." The bouncing slowed to a stop, and Bing smiled sheepishly.

* * *

Much like everything else, the day of the party arrived quicker than expected. Being a Pretty Cure, and in school, and in sports and clubs filled the days up so there was no time to sit around and think about what was coming up. Sofía and Bing struggled to find time to meet up to shop for their girlfriend's birthday present, and even then the pair had decided to send Boo to look for things while they were in school, nearly getting the fairy trampled by unaware shoppers on more than one occasion. The close calls were worth it, at least for the girls who were enthralled with their purchase of a little stuffed rabbit holding a pink plush heart, a pair of silver earrings, and a lacy blouse from a consignment shop.

"I hope it fits her," Bing murmured worriedly as the two wrapped up the gifts, sitting cross legged on Sofía's bed. The party was only half an hour away, so any returns were simply out of the question.

"We should be fine," Sofía reassured her, "My dad and I have helped her hem some of her clothes so I think I've got a good feel for what fits."

Bing nodded, taping the last corner of the wrapping paper to the earring box. "I'm no good at romantic stuff...sorry I left the brunt of the gift ideas to you."

"Hey! I did all the hard work, boo!" the fairy protested, taking Bing's finished box and placing it into Sofía's bag. "Neither of you nearly got stepped on, boo."

"We're not small enough to get stepped on," Bing replied coolly. "Well, maybe Sofía." She shot a coy glance at the smaller girl who threw the bow in her hand at her smug girlfriend.

* * *

The pair pulled up in Sofía's car just in time, Boo and the presents nestled in the bottom of Sofía's tote bag. Fay's house was simple and small, tucked away back in the woods down a quiet road where the neighbors were few and far between. As soon as their tires crunched over the dirt of the driveway, the birthday girl came running out from behind the house in a long white dress, flashing an even whiter smile.

"Hello! I'm so glad you're here, everyone can't wait to officially meet you," she called out to them, holding out her hands, "I can take your bags!"

"Oh hell no! You're just gonna try to sneak a peek at your presents!" Sofía accused with a playful grin. "You can say hi to Boo though."

The fairy's ears pricked up out of the bag at the mention of her name, and she poked her head out shortly thereafter. "Happy birthday! Your wish had better be to take down Frighton."

Fay laughed, "Well I can't tell you what my wish is can I?" she asked sweetly, though the fairy did not seem particularly amused as she quickly ducked back down into the bag.

Walking around the side of the house, both girls took a careful look around. Because it was so far, they didn't often spend much time at Fay's house, and as such had yet to formally meet her family. Rounding the house to the back yard where the dinner was set up, it wasn't hard to tell which were her military parents, and which were her wayfaring aunt and uncle.

Both the girl's parents were tall and blonde, much like their daughter. Her dad was muscular and clean cut, and just as tall as Fay in her heels. Bing was nearly certain by the look of his large hands and the glint in his eye that he could kill someone with a toothpick, while Sofía was more concerned with the fact that his neck was seemingly thicker than her torso.

Fay clearly got her angelic looks from her mother, though while Fay was an angel of mercy her mother looked like an angel of death, a valkyrie perhaps. Her eyes were bright and catlike, and if her husband could kill a man with a toothpick then she would use that toothpick to clean her teeth immediately after, and probably crush it with something as benign as her pinky, which presumably was as tough as the rest of her.

"Mom, dad, this is Sofía and Bing. Guys, these are my parents!" Her father stuck a hand out to Bing who shook it expressionlessly.

"Whew, a nice firm handshake! You don't find those much now a days!" the man boomed in a surprisingly jolly voice, punching Bing playfully in the shoulder, "You're gonna go far kid, ha!" The girl was entirely taken aback by this exchange. Now the ominous glint in his hooded eyes seemed more like youthful spirit, rather than malice. He then set his sights on Sofía, shaking her hand which was immeasurably dwarfed in comparison to the man's. "Nice to meet you both!" he said jovially, "Just call me Joe."

Her mother simply smiled and waved in greeting to both of them. "And I'm Hilda, It is nice to finally meet you! Though Fay talks about you so much it feels like we already know you."

"Good things, I hope," Bing replied with a small smile, casting a sly glance Fay's way to see her porcelain cheeks flushed pink.

"Oh yes!" her mother assured her, "I hear you're the captain of the volleyball team? You know we have a net, we should scrimmage sometime, Joe and I used to play a lot on deployment. We could do two on three, just to give you a fighting chance?" she teased.

"Yikes, I'm not sure if I'd be of much use to them," Sofía admittedly shyly, "I'm not too great at sports."

Fay's father waved a hand dismissively, "Oh neither are we. These old eyes just aren't what they used to be, ha!"

"Fay told us you helped show her around school, thanks so much for taking her under your wing," her mother added, Sofía shuffling her feet sheepishly at the praise.

"It's the least I could do!"

"Enough with the chitchat! I want some cake!" a man shouted across the yard, presumably her uncle. The couples could not have been more different, with her burly and clean cut parents compared to her aunt and uncle who seemed markedly sloppier, and substantially hairier. Her aunt's hair was tied back in a long braid, while her uncle continued the motif with a robust braided beard.

"Sounds good to me!" Hilda quipped, "Sweetie why don't you go get your brother and tell him its time for cake."

Fay nodded, trotting off to find Tyler who was playing alone at the edge of the yard that backed up to the woods. "Hey Ty, I think we're gonna do cake and presents soon!"

The boy peered apathetically over his shoulder, turning back to his toy truck. "Are those girls here?"

"Yeah, and I know they'd really like to meet you," Fay said softly, kneeling down beside her brother. "Is everything okay?"

"No. I don't like them," Tyler muttered, though he stood to his feet, clutching the truck to his chest. "I don't like girls."

Fay frowned, eyes downcast absently towards the ground. "Is it because of me that you don't like girls?" she asked quietly, reaching out carefully and resting a hand on the boy's shoulder. Quickly he shrugged off the hand, looking over his shoulder with blue eyes that pierced her heart.

"I want my big brother back!" he shouted, beginning to cry as he dashed unexpectedly off beyond the boundary of the manicured yard and into the dense underbrush of the woods. Fay's limbs felt leaden, but as her muscles caught up with the rapid spinning of her mind she took off after him.

"Tyler! Tyler come back, please!" she cried, searching through the packed shrubbery for anywhere he could be hiding.

"Tyler please, can we talk?" she shouted again, combing the greenery as twigs snagged on her dress, little monsters holding her back. Finally she burst into a clearing, though the relief was short lived as she spotted the red truck on the ground just at the other edge of the clearing, with a looming shadow standing amongst the foliage.

"Exxx," the beast hissed, growing a pair of arms and climbing out of the brush. Without a second thought Fay produced her bon-bomb, lobbing it to the ground and reciting her incantation.

"**Nightmares nevermore, trick-or-treat transformation!"**

Smoke billowed around her and through the trees, obscuring the vision of the anxoid. Fearfully it began to thrash its arms to and fro, dispersing the smoke around it to reveal a fully transformed Pretty Cure standing before it.

"**A ghostly chill on a frightful night, Cure Spectre!"**

An arm lashed out towards the blue cure, who leapt into the air to dodge and landed just to the right of the attack. "Tyler please! Can you hear me?"

Ignoring her pleas, the anxoid swung out its other arm with an angry hiss. Spectre tucked and rolled out of the way of the incoming attack, and then bounced just out of reach as the monster swung again.

"I won't hit you! Just please give me my brother back!" the cure pleaded, dodging a third incoming attack narrowly. With solemn resolve she placed both grey gloved hands at the base of her throat, sliding upwards and producing her bonewick wand. As the anxoid swung again with a clenched fist Spectre jumped, aiming her wand downward.

"**Pretty Cure Cobweb Curse!"**

A beam of light shot from her wand that splintered into several webbed tendrils, securing the hand down to the ground like a net.

"I know you're in there Tyler, please fight this for me! You can get out!" she insisted, though the beast only hissed at her, lunging for her with its free hand. Spectre dove to the side once more, casting another spell that secured this hand firmly to the ground as well.

"There! Now you can't fight me, please let my brother go!"

With a wet smack, two new arms sprouted from the blackness of the anxoid's body, and both hands flew towards the Cure outstretched. Deftly Spectre launched herself through the air, landing atop one of the new arms and firing another web straight down to trap the first hand. Once the other turned and came back for her she twisted, her long ponytail whipping around her as she fired another, blasting the fourth hand with a sticky golden net.

Landing on this fourth arm, Cure Spectre climbed carefully up towards the masked face of the anxoid, getting as close as she comfortably could.

"Tyler I'm sorry I didn't talk to you about this…I thought you were too young to explain things to but that wasn't fair of me. Please come out so we can talk."

Unexpectedly, a third set of arms grew from the anxoid, and with the Cure's proximity they had no problem snatching her up between both hands. The monster hissed in satisfaction, beginning to squeeze the trapped warrior between its large hands as she struggled to get free. The air seemed to leave her lungs, her voice breathy and faint, but still she managed to cast one last spell straight upwards.

The golden light burst apart like a firework above them before raining down and trapping the anxoid, and the pretty cure, underneath the net. The anxoid began to writhe underneath the shimmering web, and its grip on Spectre loosened enough for her to take a loud, gasping breath. Still light headed, she laid her head down against the hands of the anxoid, and wrapped her arms around what she could reach in a loose hug.

"I know you're scared, and that's okay. But I'm here for you, when you're done."

The monster ceased its thrashing, falling suddenly calm under the weight of the golden net. Spectre felt the grip around her loosen further, and the mass felt as though it were softening underneath her. It melted away in thick globs until she was free, and quickly she crawled on her hands and knees towards the body that had begun to reveal her little brother underneath. The black goop began to sink into the ground and the mask soon popped off, clattering to the ground beside the boy. Quickly Fay detransformed, the web disappearing along with her Cure form, and she scooped Tyler up in her arms and held him tight.

"Wh-what happened?" Tyler asked, rubbing his eyes gently.

"You ran away, I was so scared," Fay said seriously, but her expression softened. "Hey, I wanted to talk to you about something. Just because I'm not your brother doesn't mean we can't do all the same fun stuff together, you know." Tyler looked away shyly. "We still play cars together, don't we?"

The little boy nodded slowly, "You're right...so you're not a girl now because you don't like being my brother anymore?"

The question sent a pang through Fay's chest. "No, of course not! I've always been a girl. People just didn't see it for a while. It would be like if people were treating you like a girl when you knew you were a boy. That'd be no fun, huh?" The boy shook his head, and Fay hugged him tight. "It wasn't because of you, Tyler. It was just the way I was made, but we can still do all the same stuff brothers do, and all the stuff a brother and sister can do too! Some things have changed, but I'm still the same person, I promise."

Tyler's lip began to wibble, and Fay patted his back gently, picking his red truck up off the ground and handing it to the boy who clutched it tightly to his chest. Bing and Sofía suddenly burst through the treeline, Boo flying along beside them.

"Wait what?" Sofía asked blankly, with no monster in sight.

"Boo said she felt an anxoid so we came-" Bing began.

"Nothing's wrong here, Tyler and I just needed to have a sibling talk," Fay said gently, the blonde boy rubbing the tears from his eyes and looking up.

"Is that a bat?" he asked quietly, pointing towards Boo who suddenly darted out of the way to hide behind the trees.

"Maybe! Or maybe it was a magical forest spirit," Fay said mysteriously, widening her eyes.

Tyler gasped softly, "We should go hunt forest spirits," he said in a hushed whisper.

Fay nodded in agreement, "But first, let's go get some cake. I bet I can eat my piece faster than you!"


	16. Chapter 16- Childhood

Fay's attic room was considerably stuffy on summer nights. Bing opened up a window and leaned languidly against the sill, fanning herself while Sofía lay spread eagle on Fay's bed, even her fingers and toes spread to lower any chances of heat retention. All the furniture and even the slanted walls exhaled heavy wooden sighs even as the sun set behind the trees. Fay's head finally bobbed up over the plane of the floor as she climbed the steep steps to her abode, a book tucked under her arm.

"My mom got out our old photo album for my birthday, and she said we could look through them! Do you wanna see?" Fay produced the book while Bing and Sofía lifted their heads with exaggerated effort.

"I wanna see, just hold on," Sofía called, grunting slightly as she wormed her way slowly down the bed and sliding off with a lethargic slump to the floor. Bing sat down beside her, though not too close, and Fay opened up the album, setting the book on the ground.

"You think you could get a breeze going in here? I'm dying, boo," the bat fairy fussed, hanging upside down from the rafters that stretched across the ceiling.

"Why don't you stand in the window and flap your wings? That'll get the air moving," Bing suggested to the pouty fairy.

"I see, all I am to you is a glorified fan, boo," she huffed, floating over to the window sill.

"Not always, just right now," Bing said with a smirk. Immediately Boo began flapping her wings vigorously, creating a small scale whirlwind that ripped through the room, flipping the pages of the photo album furiously and blowing everyone's hair until it stuck out in all manner of unsightly directions. Satisfied with her work, it was now Boo's turn to smirk as her little paws gripped the outside of the window and she flipped backwards over the edge to hang around outside and cool off.

Sofía peered over at the page the album landed on, pointing to a plastic covered photo of a young Fay atop a tetherball pole with a steely look in her eye. "You seem to be a bit confused on how that game works," she giggled.

"I'm sure there's a story behind this one?" Bing asked, raising a brow.

"Oh yes, this was at a playground by our house in Tennessee, I was about nine at the time…"

* * *

With her hands shoved indignantly in her overalls, Fay waited in a small line of children for her turn at the tetherball pole. She and her friend Mallory had already swung as much on the swings as they could stand, and played a rousing game of monkey on the ground with a few other kids until they grew tired of all the climbing around and opted instead for a more stationary game. Unfortunately, the same boy had been camped out in the circle, knocking out any competitors before calling out for the next victim to step in.

He stood taller than most of the other kids, and a little older, but that didn't seem to assuage his aggression by any means. His eyebrows were long and wild, hairs pointing every which way as he maintained a malicious smirk (with gaps of missing teeth that just seemed to collect spit) with each new challenger that entered the ring.

"He's such a bully," Mallory commented in a hushed voice to Fay, who nodded sternly as the boy lobbed the ball above the next challengers head with ease. "I wanted to play with you but he won't give anyone else a chance."

"You're really good though," Fay pointed out, "If you beat him then you and I can play for a little then let more kids play!" Mallory's nostrils flared as she huffed at the boy, and soon enough the ball clanged against the pole again with the sound of hollow defeat.

"You can do it Mal," Fay encouraged, her companion setting foot bravely into the ring. A flame of childhood justice burned in her eyes as she puffed out her chest, and reached for the ball.

"I'm the winner so I get to serve," the boy interjected, cutting short her valiant entrance and snagging the ball for himself.

"Go Mallory!"

Fay's cheers bolstered her confidence, and as the boy swung through the serve she leapt into the air and defiantly smacked it back to the other side, winning a good two rotations around the pole.

"Shut up! You're distracting me," the boy retorted, wrinkling his nose at Fay who shrunk back slightly amongst the others in line. While he busied himself snarling at the blonde at the edge of the ring, Mallory scored another rotation. Now more children joined in with Fay cheering for the girl, the line becoming more of a semicircle around Mallory's side of the ring as they watched the playground battle.

The ball whistled past, wrapping around the pole a fourth time when the boy let out a grunt of frustration. Unexpectedly he lunged out and grasped the ball with both hands, a clear break of the rules of engagement.

"Hey you're cheating!" Mallory called out, "You lose, you can't just grab the-"

An wicked crack cut her off and silenced the dissent in the crowd simultaneously as the ball made direct contact with the rebel's face and sent her crumpling to the ground.

"That's what you get for being whiney," the boy muttered, unwinding the ball back to a starting position. "Now who's next?"

"Mallory are you okay?" Fay wailed, dropping to her knees and resting a hand on her friend's back. The rebel lifted her head and nodding slowly, though tears poured down her face as steadily as the blood from her nose.

The other kids gasped, one little boy coming up to her and tapping her gently. "My mom is right there, she can get you to a doctor!" he said, extending a pudgy little hand to help the girl up. The bully scoffed as they walked to a woman sitting on a park bench not far off, and he crossed his arms.

"What a baby, she can't even handle-" This time it was he who was cut off by the gentle clanging of the tetherball pole. He and the remaining kids looked up to see Fay, shoes discarded on the ground and ball in hand monkeying her way up to the top of the pole.

"What are you doing?!"

"I'm going to sit up here with the ball until my dad comes for me," Fay said with a passive aggressive pout. "And then I'm going to tell him what you did and he's going to tell Mallory's dad what you did and you're gonna be in big trouble because our dads are in the army and they'll beat you up I bet."

The boy stared in disbelief while others began to cheer for their second rebel leader, one even scooping up her shoes to protect them from being held for ransom by the now infuriated playground dictator. He huffed and puffed for some time, jeering that she would get tired and couldn't stay up there forever, but her stalwart passive aggression was only fortified by the taunts. True to her word, she held the ball high out of reach until the sun began to set and her father came to collect her, the sight of which sent the overthrown ruler running immediately, never to terrorize the playground again.

* * *

"My dad said he was proud of me, so he snapped a picture before I climbed down."

"That's awesome," Sofía breathed, "I didn't know you were secretly so cool! And what a good little friend too, I wish I had a best friend like that don't you, Bing?"

Bing blinked. "I do have a best friend like that. Saanvi."

Sofía visibly deflated, "Oh, right."

"How long have you guys been friends?" Fay inquired, leaning back on her hands.

Bing scrunched her mouth over to one side as she thought. "Somewhere around six I think…"

* * *

Upon entering the classroom, Bing's first thought was that she had never seen that many crayons in her life. Her second was that she had never seen that many people staring at her. She wore her hair in low pigtails, and fiddled with the hem of her shirt as she was brought to the front of the room by the teacher.

"Everyone, we have a new student joining us! This is Bing, and from now on she will be in our class!" She beamed down at the child expectantly, "Why don't you tell us something about yourself, Bing?"

The little girl looked up at the teacher, eyes wide and mouth silent.

"What is your favorite thing to do with your family?" the teacher offered with a small smile, nodding encouragement to the pigtailed girl.

"I like...to eat dinner?" The upward intonation made the girl's soft response a hesitant question, and she looked to the teacher for affirmation.

"Where are you from?"

A little voice piped up from somewhere in the room, and Bing identified the inquirer as a small girl with dark skin and black hair in twin braids. Her black eyes were locked unwaveringly on Bing, and she clutched a stack of end-to-end markers in her fist like a staff.

"I'm from China. Now I live down the street," she responded carefully.

"Oh that is quite a big move!" the teacher gasped with a smile, "Why don't you go take this nametag and sit there by Saanvi? It seems she wants to be your first friend!" Bing shuffled over to the empty seat by the girl with the braids, and set her name tag down on the space in front of her. With a quiet pop, Saanvi took off the top two markers from her staff and handed them to Bing.

"Now you can be a rainbow princess too."

Bing looked down at the markers set before her, and mimicked the way Saanvi held hers in a tightly clenched fist, a kindergarten scepter.

"My family is from a different country too. But I am from here," she informed quietly as the teacher began to talk, about what Bing couldn't recall. "I like your pigtails."

The girl seemed determined to fill up any quiet space with words, but it helped Bing relax and fall into the rhythm of school. The new girl smiled nervously, shrugging her shoulders up to hide behind them as she whispered, "I like yours too."

When the end of the day rolled around, Bing pulled her Hello Kitty backpack over her shoulders and held tightly onto the straps as the other kids filed out the door. Saanvi tapped her on the shoulder.

"Wanna go see the gym? We only have gym sometimes but it's really fun."

Bing smiled, nodding enthusiastically as Saanvi linked their arms and pulled her the opposite direction from everyone else who headed en masse out to the bus loop. The gym was wide and open, with high ceilings and fluorescent lights that made Bing squint as she looked up. The further her head tipped back, the more unstable she became, and the kindergartener plopped backwards onto a gymnastics mat.

"Those are lots of fun," Saanvi cheered, joining in and flopping onto the mat. "Up there, there's a big rope and a net that the big kids get to climb. And sometimes we get to have a big parachute and we bounce balls on it and sit in it like a tent."

Bing's eyes went wide. "And then what?"

"Sometimes we get to play sports too. Do you have a favorite sport?" Bing shook her head, her chubby cheeks weighing down a solemn frown. "Well then come on! We can go pick one out for you."

Saanvi grabbed her hand and pulled her along across the gym as fast as their little legs could go to a large metal crate filled with different size and shape balls. "A sport is a game you play with a ball. So pick a ball you like and that will be your favorite sport." With some effort Saanvi lifted the top of the box and began taking out a few samples for her new friend to assess. The first was small and yellow, and very bouncy which Bing enjoyed, but the hairy texture was less than pleasant and she tossed it aside. The next was pointy and hardly looked like a ball at all, it didn't bounce well, and it was much too large for her little fingers to get a good grip on, so that one couldn't be her favorite either.

Bing observed them all with a scrutinous eye, tossing away an orange one, one with black spots, one filled with holes, and one was small and hard and hurt her new friend when she carelessly threw it in her direction. At the bottom of this treasure trove of sports however, one remained to be tested. It was soft and squishy, a good size for holding and carrying around, and had ridges all over it that she could trace her fingers along.

"This is my favorite sport."

* * *

"We got in trouble after that though, because we weren't supposed to be in there, let alone throwing shit everywhere," Bing laughed quietly, "But we just hung out ever since."

Sofía smushed her cheeks together and let out a high pitched noise that somewhat resembled a squeal, and made the other girls shrink back and wince, while Boo shouted through the window.

"Knock it off! My ears are sensitive, boo!"

"You were both just so cute as kids," Sofía whined, face planting into the carpet. "I was just weird."

"When I had my first class with you Freshman year you seemed normal enough," Bing offered with a smile.

"Yeah...but you didn't have to see what I was like before that, otherwise you might not want to be associated with me."

* * *

Most afternoons at recess Sofía would find a nice sunny place to lay and watch the other kids to see if there were any ongoing games that looked fun to join. Usually a group of kids playing house would let her join in as something obscure like a pet bird, or some kids playing a game would call to her if their teams were uneven.

This day was different however. Sofía wore a brand new dress that her father had made for her, and as such felt particularly brazen. Shying away from the usual groups she played with, she strutted right up to the swings where two of the most popular kids in her grade swung. One was Abby, a pretty girl who told stories of all her daring shoplifting escapades and promised those in her inner circle anything they wanted from Walmart, even makeup. The other was Austin, an athletic boy who wasn't very popular initially, until he broke his leg. He got a clunky neon green cast that he had everyone write all over, and he would let people take turns pushing him around in his wheelchair and getting them out of class early. Even after the cast came off, he remained the cool kid who had broken a bone.

"Hey guys!" Sofía called to them as she approached, swishing her dress side to side with her hands, "Did you see my new dress?" The two kids looked at her, though neither made a move to reply. "Anyway, I wanted to tell you I'm a part of a really cool secret club, and wanted to see if you wanted to join it!"

This made Abby dig her heels into the mulch and stop her swinging, showering Sofía in wood chips in the process. "A secret club?"

"Yeah!" Sofía beamed, waving her arms emphatically. "It's a club of secret jaguar vampires. At night we meet up and fly around and hunt!" Abby no longer looked interested, rather her face fell and she turned up her nose at the idea.

"Jaguar vampires? I've never even heard of those."

"Yeah!"

"We're both 9," Austin scoffed as he continued to swing. "You're only 8, so you wouldn't understand but once you're 9 you don't believe in those kinds of things anymore."

Sofía's mouth fell open indignantly. "Well they're real! This is what we look like," she insisted, pulling a sheet of lined notebook paper from the pocket on the front of her dress and showing the pair a crude drawing of a spotted cat with bat wings and a small cape.

"You just drew that," Abby remarked flatly, much to Sofía's dismay.

"N-no I just...well we don't show up in photographs!" she insisted.

Austin began to laugh as he swung, and Abby rolled her eyes. "Okay," she began, "Well how would I join your secret jaguar vampire club? If I even wanted to."

Sofía beamed, turning over a hand, "Just put your arm in my hand and I'll change you!"

Abby looked to Austin, who simply shook his head. Still, curiosity got the better of her and she stuck out an arm and placed it in Sofía's little hand. Immediately Sofía's fingers curled around the girl's forearm and she began to dig her nails into her skin. The girl yelped and immediately tugged her arm away, grasping both hands on the swing chains tightly.

"What the heck were you doing?! I don't like this game, go play with someone else."

Sofía frowned, and shuffled away with a heavy sigh. Well now she'd never believe her, since she didn't let her finish. Surely it was only a matter of time before Abby and Austin started telling everyone what a weirdo she was. The girl was about to throw in the towel and go be a bird for the house game when a quiet voice spoke to her from behind.

"Did you say you were a vampire?"

Whipping around with zealous enthusiasm Sofía saw a chubby little girl with unruly red hair sitting up against the school in the shade.

"Yeah, I did. I'm a jaguar vampire actually," she corrected, approaching the girl and sitting beside her in the shade.

"I'm a vampire too. But just the normal kind," the red-headed girl remarked with a wide smile. "That's why I can't go in the sun, or I burn," she said knowingly, "That's why I'm so white."

"Oh wow, that's too bad. I guess I don't burn in the sun because of the jaguar part of me," Sofía rationalized.

"Can I see your picture?" she asked softly, Sofía producing the sketch once again from her pocket. "This looks really nice! I'll draw one of both of us together sometime," she promised, gesturing to the sketchbook at her side that Sofía hadn't noticed until then.

"That would be great! You can draw us playing and flying at night! My name is Sofía by the way, nice to meet you fellow vampire!"

The redhead smiled, throwing her arms around the girl in a bone-crushing hug. "I'm so glad to have another vampire friend! My name is Peyton."

* * *

"We didn't meet Audrey until middle school, but she looked like a vampire anyway so we let her join our group," Sofía laughed. "I had kinda forgotten that our entire friendship was based around vampires."

Fay laughed, "Aw, that's so sweet!"

Bing snorted, sitting up straight and cracking her back. "Yeah...you sound pretty weird. But all kids are weird," she muttered.

Sofía stood and flopped on her stomach onto Fay's bed. "We're so lucky we have each other, a bunch of weirdos."

"Weirdo pile!"

Fay flew across the room before anyone could react, picking up Bing and tossing her onto the bed alongside Sofía before leaping on top of both of them.

"Ow, you elbowed me in the boob!" Sofía whined.

"What boob?" Bing teased.

"Hey you two, be nice!"

Boo picked her head up and floated back into the room, sitting atop the pile of girls with a heavy sigh.

"My legendary Pretty Cure warriors are a bunch of losers, boo."


	17. Chapter 17- Music

The late summer sun beat down on the group of kids in the parking lot with vigor, only to bounce right back up off the blacktop and give them a second sucker punch to the sweat glands. Though Fay's hair was plastered to her sweat-beaded forehead, there weren't any signs of weariness as she and the section leaders lead the band in a rousing set of warm ups.

"...98, 99, 100 STOP!" The band shouted in unison, smacking their hands down to their sides in unison, except for one freshman trumpet player who raised his arms for another jumping jack much to the disdain of the rest of the band. Fay shook her head and everyone groaned.

"We didn't all stop right on 100, so we're going to do 50 more, let's go! 1, 2, 3…" Her ponytail bobbed up and down as she jumped, and if her muscles grew weary it wasn't noticeable to Nia, who stood just beside her as section leader for the flutes, and was showing her lethargy much more obviously.

"...48, 49, 50 STOP!"

This time, no one dared raise their hand for another jump, and everyone relaxed as they looked around and saw their perfect form.

"Good job guys," Nia cheered as Fay stooped down to pick up her cowbell and held her stick high above her head.

"Almost time for water! Everyone line up for running block!" Everyone shuffled into place as Fay began to tap out a beat to run to. "Four laps around the parking lot today team! Let's do it!"

Sofía watched from her usual shady vantage point, though this time she had Bing and Boo for some company. Boo's little head poked out of her backpack which sat on her lap, and the two girls leaned back against a tree trunk on the far edge of the parking lot.

"I'm getting sweaty just looking at it," Sofía whistled, undoing her uniform's bow and tugging on her collar.

"Yeah. I like exercising indoors," Bing agreed, piling her hair on top of her head in a messy bun that was quickly becoming her new signature look.

"I don't like exercising at all," Sofía snorted shamelessly.

"Okay guys, sprint to your water!" Fay shouted, banging the cowbell rapidly as everyone dashed for their bags and clutched their water bottles like long lost children. Fay trotted with hers over to the pair of girls under the tree, taking a long sip. "How do we look out there?"

"Pretty good!" Bing quipped.

The bat fairy wrinkled her nose. "You sure do stink though, boo," she remarked, hiding her nose behind her heart-dotted wing.

"Oh yes, it's hot out there today," Fay agreed, wiping off her face with her shirt. "I just wanted to let you guys know it's going to be a longer practice today since we have our first marching invitational this weekend, so you can head out whenever."

"I wanna see you guys compete!" Sofía said with sudden passion, clenching her fists. "Where is the invitational?"

"It's a little ways away, it's at Aspen Grove High School which I think is in Westford."

"Oooh that's the fancy rich people school," Sofía crooned. "Can we come?"

Fay nodded with a smile, "I'd love for you to come! I think it's a few dollars for admission but I'd really like that!"

"I just really want to see you in that little outfit," Bing grinned, "I haven't seen you wear it before."

"Well then I'll make sure to look extra smokin," Fay teased, sticking out her tongue and turning on her heel. "I've gotta get back, I'll text you guys tonight!"

* * *

When Saturday arrived, Sofía hopped out of bed with a jovial hum, flinging the blinds open and showering the room with light and awakening her fairy friend.

"You need to be careful not to be too distracted, boo" Boo warned, hanging from the ceiling fan. "Even with your trip, that doesn't mean Frighton will stop sending The Dread here."

Sofía heaved a sigh, trying to expel the negativity that itched in her chest. "You know, we've been working really hard," she reminded, pulling clothes for the day from her drawers. "I mean this is our senior year of high school and I've been fighting as a Pretty Cure since my first day. Bing and Fay are both on teams and have been going to practices and fighting too. We're allowed to have fun too, or to just take a day off."

Boo wrinkled her nose as she pinched her face into a fuzzy scowl. "This isn't just some kind of club you can take a break from, boo. This is more important than sports, or school!"

"Don't you remember what it was like to be human?" Sofía asked with exasperation, "Sometimes we need breaks. We can't just keep going and going all the time. Besides, none of your ideas for getting us there have worked yet, have they? And you have nothing else to do but that!"

Boo flinched slightly at this accusation. "I have an idea, boo...It just hasn't-"

"Why don't you worry about that, and let us worry about being Pretty Cure then," Sofía said curtly, slipping on her shoes and shutting the door behind her.

* * *

Bing cranked the AC in Sofía's car as they headed out towards the high school where the competition was being held. The sun baked the black leather seats and the volleyball prince lifted her legs and put her feet on the dashboard so her sweaty thighs would stop sticking.

"Wasn't Boo going to come with us?" she asked, peering into the back seat to check the fairy's usual hiding spots and resting her water bottle against her forehead.

"We got in a bit of a fight this morning," Sofía admitted, "She was acting like we were trying to get away from being Pretty Cure! I mean all I said was we needed a break every once in a while, it's not like if we saw a dread somewhere that we'd just let it take someone," she muttered, rolling her eyes. "She can be so out of touch, all she thinks about is Frighton."

As they neared the school, it became clear they were in the right area as the houses got substantially larger, the yards greener, and the fences higher the further they drove. The school itself was no exception, and the girls stared wide-eyed as they crossed the grounds for the football field. Tall, polished windows made up the majority of the walls, and huge murals of the school's mascot, a blue and gold eagle, adorned the walkways, along with scattered bands warming up and filling the air with music.

The football field was nearly a full fledged stadium, and the walkway to the seats was blocked by a rather blocky boy acting as some sort of marching band bouncer.

"Entry is $7 a piece, no outside food or drink."

Bing looked down at the water bottle in her hand, then back to the boy. "Is water okay?" The boy pushed his sunglasses further down his nose and peered over them, first at Bing, then to the bottle of water, and back to Bing. Sofía watched the standoff as the two locked eyes for what seemed like an eternity, neither one of them blinking. Slowly, Bing raised her eyebrows expectantly and the boy blinked. A wide smirk spread across the prince's face and the boy cast a sideways glance towards the ground.

"I'll allow it."

"I didn't think he was gonna let you in," Sofía snorted, dragging her girlfriend towards an overpriced concession stand for a soft pretzel.

"I always get what I want," she grinned, sipping her water amicably.

Finding seats the girls flipped through the program to find when Redwood High would be performing, which turned out to be second to last. That left a long afternoon full of watching a variety of bands ranging from impressive to I'm-not-sure-you-even-tried before the sun had began to lower and Sofía pointed to the group assembling in a line just beyond the field.

"Look, there they are!"

The band began to file onto the field, each little pinprick of a person taking their place and standing still and poised.

"Ladies and gentlemen, joining us from Red Hollow, the Redwood High School Marching Band!"

Sofía and Bing stood to their feet, waving and cheering as the announcer introduced the new band, and letting out a loud whistle as Fay turned on her podium to face the spectators and performed a salute that was not unlike her movements post-transformation into Cure Spectre.

"She looks so dang cute," Bing gushed, sitting down and bouncing her legs rhythmically. "I don't think I've ever seen their full show!"

"The Band Masters Association is proud to present, in their finals competition, drum majors Fay Weaver-" the girls let out another brief cheer "and Nick Sorensen, and the Redwood High School Marching Band!"

The music began softly, with pitter patters and quiet melodies that gradually grew fuller, stronger with each step the band took. The color guard girls weaved gracefully in between them, rifles fluttering in quick spins from their hands with the chiming of the music. Sofía felt a soft tug on her shorts, and looked down to see Boo hiding underneath the bleachers.

"Psst! I wanted to apologize, boo," the fairy whispered.

"Be quiet, we're performing!" Sofía hissed, keeping her eyes trained on the band. Bing looked over in confusion, spotting the fairy and shaking her head.

They continued to watch the performance while Boo sulked in the shadows, though suddenly Sofía felt another urgent tug on her shorts.

"Sofía, I've got a really bad feeling about something-"

"I said shh!" Sofía demanded in a hushed whisper, but a loud gasp from Bing made her straighten up immediately.

"Oh shit!"

A long shadow was cast over the football field as something stood, obstructing the stadium lights. A tall, dark figure with long horns was perched on the edge of one of the sockets, standing on the slimmest of edges with ease. There was a high pitched screeching noise and suddenly all the lights in the stadium burst, the band stopping what it was doing immediately and looking around as the crowd too began to panic.

With a loud crack the figure was gone, and just as abruptly it reappeared in the center of the field sending all of the musicians scurrying away. Lady Baphomet spoke softly, and yet regardless of how far away she was everyone at the competition heard her voice as if she was whispering into their ears.

"I'm sorry to ruin the festivities," she began, the busted lights shooting tiny sparks into the dusk sky. "The music really is so...lovely. I came from Red Hollow myself, in a way. It's a much smaller place than Westford. But I have been unable to leave that place, until now. It seems the magic that allows me to appear on this earth has extended further than usual."

Sofía and Bing looked at one another with worried glances. Without realizing, Sofía instinctively gripped Bing's hand as if searching for braille answers across her palms.

"Do you think it's us?"

"Maybe she's feeding off our magic…"

Both girls looked to Boo, whose pink eyes were wide, and pupils narrow.

"I didn't expect to find this dense a concentration of adolescents so quickly," Lady Baphomet continued. "A strange sensation pulled me here, and I followed not knowing where it would lead me. Fortunately everything worked out splendidly; I believe this is a prime location to harvest."

A loud bang echoed through the stadium and Lady Baphomet turned her head slowly towards a security officer whose arms were still raised with his gun pointed directly at her. The bullet had no effect however, it seemed to pass through her entirely unobstructed, the only indication she was hit being a smokey black trail that floated listlessly from the exit point.

Stretching her long arms out to the side, the head of a dread pushed its way out of the blackness of her chest, struggling as if swimming through a viscous liquid until it had come free. Then the pointed nose of another pushed its way from the void of Lady Baphomet's body, and then a third began to grow out of her.

"We can't transform here, there's way too many people," Bing muttered worriedly, "But…"

"There's a port-o-potty over there?" Sofía suggested, standing to her feet though her knees began to shake as soon as they bore her weight.

"I am not going in there," Bing exclaimed in disgust. Another explosion brought their attention back to the field, this time coming from the drum major's podium where Fay became engulfed in blue smoke.

"**A ghostly chill on a frightful night, Cure Spectre!"**

The two remaining Pretty Cure produced their Bon-Bombs as well. "There's no turning back now," Sofía vowed, raising her smoke bomb in the air.

"I guess our secret's out!" Bing agreed, raising her own as well.

"**Nightmares nevermore, trick-or-treat transformation!"**

"**A mischievous smile on a moonlit night, Cure Witch!"**

"**A warm smile on an autumn night, Cure Pumpkin!"**

"**Banishing fear with the power of courage! We are Spooky! Pretty Cure!"**

Pumpkin and Witch took no note of the startled faces of their neighbors on the bleachers as they leapt deftly down the rows of seats until they landed with a clack on the platform with Spectre.

"Ah, Pretty Cure. Perhaps it was you who drew me here," Lady Baphomet mused in a deep, droaning voice. By now all three dread stood at her feet, the terror masks on their tails poised and looking with blank eyes at the warriors. "I will leave you to it then."

The goat-headed figure took a slow step back, but in one swift motion Spectre had pulled her bonewick wand from her throat and aimed it at the creature immediately.

"**Pretty Cure Cobweb Curse!"**

The flame that tipped her wand shot a beam of light at the lanky monster, sticking in a spider web pattern to her arm. Lady Baphomet looked down at her arm with her usual blank expression, following the shimmering trail of light to Spectre.

"You are new, so I will forgive you this once. But this is not our time to fight," she explained, no change in her affect that might signal distress. The being did everything so slowly that none of the girls expected what came next.

With abrupt swiftness Lady Baphomet grabbed ahold of the sticky web that gripped her arm and tugged down, not to remove it, but instead to pull Spectre from her place on the podium. The warrior crashed to the ground, and both her partners gasped and leapt down to her aid. As soon as they looked up again, the goat-headed figure had vanished, the only reminder of her presence a thin, wispy tendril of black smoke lingering in the air.

Immediately the dread took action, all three leaping off in different directions and going for the nearest human. All of them were in a state of absolute panic, even those up in the stadium seats began to scream and rush for the exit where the bouncer boy had long since abandoned his post.

"Everyone, get somewhere safe!" Pumpkin shouted in a booming voice, her hands cupped around her mouth before she kicked off towards two of the dread, producing her wand from her chest.

"**Pretty Cure Jack-o-Jinx!"**

The fiery pumpkin barrelled towards the two beasts, but both leapt out of the way. Skidding to a halt, Pumpkin held her wand like a bat and swung at one of the shadow monsters, cracking it upside the head. With a wet smack its mouth snapped open and it lunged for Pumpkin's outstretched arms when suddenly it was pulled back. Spectre swung her wand over her head and towards the ground, sending the dread she had snagged with her spell crashing down.

By now the entire field had cleared, and most of the stands were empty as only a few final people pushed their way through the narrow exit.

"A little help please!" Witch cried, struggling beneath a dread that snapped its jaws at her, its tail swinging past her face too close for comfort more than once, nearly touching the terror mask to her skin.

Another beam of golden light shot towards the creature and tugged it away, and Spectre whipped it over to the other dread already stuck to the ground.

"Nice wrangling!" Witch complimented, standing to her feet. "Now we've just gotta get that one!"

Now all three girls convened on the remaining dread that took little jumps from side to side, unable to make a decision on where to go.

"Ready ladies?" Pumpkin grinned, pulling back a fist.

"Whenever you are!" Spectre called back, clenching her fingers tight.

"Time for a triple cure punch!" Witch cried, and all three girls swung through at the monster and successfully cracked the mask on its tail.

"Hey Spectre, gather it with the others, let's see if I can purify them all at once!" Witch laughed, bouncing quickly over to the other two dread that writhed underneath the golden web. Spectre launched one more attack, using this golden thread to not only stick to the monster with the cracked mask, but to string up all three in a little spider silk net from the busted stadium lights.

"There you go, Witch!"

"Take us home!" Pumpkin called.

"**Pretty Cure Haunted Hex!"**

A blazing pentagram launched towards the bag of shadowed monsters, and upon impact all three melded into one big, thick glob of darkness. They dripped slowly through the gaps in the net, landing on the ground below with heavy splats until all the matter had sunk into the earth.

The three girls stood together, de-transforming in unison and bringing one another into a tight embrace.

"I'm so sorry this happened during your show!" Sofía murmured, burying her face in Fay's side.

Bing nodded, hugging the two tightly, "For what it's worth though, you guys looked really good until shit hit the fan."

Fay laughed, resting her chin on Sofía's head and gave Bing's shoulder a squeeze. "Thanks guys...I'm so glad you came. I really don't think I would've been able to handle this all on my own."

"Oh please," Sofía laughed, "You're a natural."

"Pretty Cure!"

Boo flew rapidly towards the group, sticking to the side of Sofía's head and rubbing her face in the chicana's hair.

"I'm so sorry boo! I shouldn't have said what I did before, boo! I know you work hard, boo! And you'd never leave anyone to get hurt, b-boo! And-!"

The three girls separated and Sofía pulled the fairy from her head, hugging her tight as the bat fairy's lip quivered. "Thank you, I know stopping Frighton is important to you. But it's important to us too. When I said I wanted a break...I just meant I didn't want to talk about it," Sofía explained, kissing the top of the fairy's head. "Of course we would never ignore a dread." The fairy rubbed her eyes, and Fay picked her up, giving her a delicate smooch on the cheek.

"What did you think of our show? What we did of it, at least."

Boo smiled tentatively, "I thought it sounded really nice, boo," she murmured softly.

"Plus, as expected, Fay looks bangin' in that outfit," Bing grinned.

Fay stiffened and looked down at her uniform, shaking her head. "You're such a dork," the blonde laughed, looking wistfully up at the stands. As her gaze lingered, her pink lips pulled down slowly and her brows knit together in worry. "Hey guys?"

"Hm?" Sofía asked, following her gaze to the stands to see what might be causing her concern.

"Everyone left before we could make up a story. And everyone saw us transform."

Bing and Sofía exchanged a worried look for the second time that day, and Boo smacked a paw to her face, shaking her head in dismay.

"Well fuck."


	18. Chapter 18- Assistance

The aftermath of the incident at the marching invitational was unlike anything the girls could have expected. Staying the night at Bing's house, the trio fussed and worried over what to do about all the people that escaped with their memory of the encounter. Bing brought up that there were some people that also left the homecoming dance before they could rewrite the story, and Fay mentioned the curious encounter with Colette on her first day of school when the gaunt-faced girl called her friends liars.

After a restless night without any sleep to speak of, the girls were startled from their half-asleep daze as Bing's mother, a short woman with greying hair and icy blue eyes, creaked open the door to the basement bedroom. Sofía's first thought was that something must be wrong for her to be down here, since she was a rare sight around the house, and Fay immediately jumped to embarrassment over meeting her girlfriend's mom for the first time in her pajamas.

"Is something wrong…?" Bing asked, rubbing her eyes and sitting up slowly.

"Someone is at the door for you."

The trio shuffled upstairs, Sofía and Fay crouching down by a window to peer outside as Bing opened the door. Immediately the small crowd at the door unleashed a barrage of questions while the girl simply blinked sleepily.

"Wh-what? One at a time...what's going on?"

"You are one of the warriors that saved everyone at the high school in Westford, correct?" one woman asked.

"A Pretty Cure?" another called out, reaching her microphone towards her. The prince was wide awake now, and her mouth hung open and empty as she searched for words to fill it.

Immediately Sofía shot to her feet and leapt into the doorway. "Yes! She is a legendary Pretty Cure warrior, destined to protect the earth, as am I, and our partner Fay! Fay, get over here!" The blonde was much more meek in her approach, holding up a hand in timid greeting.

One of the reporters turned around to an intern that hovered over her shoulder. "Tell the teams at the Lara and Weaver residences that all the girls are here!"

* * *

Within no time at all the trio catapulted to the level of local celebrity. Every news outlet called for interviews, though each one more or less asked the same questions, and the girls gave more or less the same answers. Yes, they were magical warriors, like a superhero with cuter outfits. Yes, they saved the attendants of the marching invitational at the Aspen Grove High School. Yes, they knew what it was that terrorized the event, and no they couldn't explain how they got their powers, or how Lady Baphomet arrived on earth.

While the interviews continued to be predictable, the call from Red Hollow's local school board was not. The invitation to speak to a crowd of children made Fay croon, Sofía cheer, and Bing feel faint.

"Oh come on Bing, it'll be fine," Sofía insisted, drumming her fingers on the steering wheel as she drove the celebrity posse to the auditorium where the children awaited their appearance. "You probably won't even have to be within five feet of any kids, just answering their questions."

"I know, it just makes me nervous being around them," Bing mumbled, bouncing her legs in the back seat while Fay peered out the window on the passenger side.

"It's too bad Boo isn't coming, I bet the kids would love her," Fay sighed wistfully.

"Yeah, that Evelyn girl is already enough for her I think," Sofía snorted. "She takes after Bing in that way, I guess."

"I'm just not mentally alert enough for this kind of thing," Bing fussed from the back. "I haven't been sleeping ever since we fought Lady Baphomet again."

Fay and Sofía shot one another a look, then glanced at Bing in the rear view mirror. "Yeah, me neither," Fay admitted with a small frown. "Did that happen the last time you two fought her?"

Sofía shook her head, "I mean...I was able to go to sleep but I had really bad nightmares. I got too close and started seeing things that weren't real," she explained softly, the memory weighing on her mind and pulling a frown on her lips.

"Well this will probably tucker us out," Fay pointed out with a hopeful smile. "Maybe tonight we can have a camp out at my house, we can make s'mores and things until we get tired, and my mom makes a great chamomile tea that'll put us out I'm sure."

Pulling the car around to the back of the building, a group of teachers and event staff suddenly swarmed the car, ushering the girls inside. "Alright, here is a plan of what to expect," one of the men began, an excitable looking fellow with a neat goatee and wild eyes, "This is mostly going to be a question and answer panel, and the kids all came with questions so just call on them and those of us with microphones in the audience will pass the mic to them for their question. Unless you have magic hearing?"

The girls blinked. "Uh, no," Bing shook her head, "We don't really have any powers at all in our normal bodies, only after we transform."

"Oh, that's right we would also like you to transform in front of them, I think they will get a kick out of that," the man remembered. "And at the end, some of the kids made presents they would like to present to you, and that's how we'll wrap up."

Fay's heart melted, "They made presents?! How sweet," she crooned.

"Also, afterwards a few of the staff members would really love to get photos with you three!"

Sofía puffed out her chest, hands on her hips as she soaked up the celebrity. "I think we can make that happen."

After fashioning microphones to the girls, they waited in the wings for the signal to come out as the man who briefed them gave an emphatic introduction.

"And now, without further ado, I present the Pretty Cure!"

With a grand sweeping gesture he signaled the girls, who filed out with smiles and hands raised and waving to the crowd. The stage lights were bright and near blinding, but Bing was certain the crowd was not just children. In fact, some of the attendees appeared to be other students from their school, and a few in the far back were clearly adults.

Soft murmurs of concern wafted from the crowd after the applause died down, and the girls looked at one another with concern, and then to the coordinator standing in the wings, seeking direction. He waved his hands emphatically in the air and twirled, then pointed at the girls sternly. The trio stared blankly for a moment before they realized what he meant, and Sofía turned to the crowd with her arms raised.

"Are you ready to see some magic?!"

The murmurs turned to cheers, a few kids in front beginning to clap excitedly. Sofía produced her Bon-Bomb with a flourish, the other two doing the same. A quick glance flashed between them before they nodded, holding their items aloft and reciting their spell in unison.

"**Nightmares nevermore, trick-or-treat transformation!"**

Gasps and cheers filled the air as the smoke enveloped the three girls, and as quickly as the stage had filled with multicolored smoke it all blasted away to reveal the cures striking their signature poses with broad smiles.

"**A mischievous silhouette on a moonlit night, Cure Witch!"**

"**A warm smile on an autumn night, Cure Pumpkin!"**

"**A ghostly chill on a frightful night, Cure Spectre!"**

"**Banishing fear with the power of courage! We are Spooky! Pretty Cure!"**

The crowd applauded emphatically, and the girls each took a playful bow, even Pumpkin beginning to loosen up with all the praise.

"So! I heard you kids had some questions for us!" Witch chimed, leaning over and cupping a hand around her ear.

"YES!" the kids, and a few of the adults, shouted back in reply.

"Hmm, who should pick?"

"I don't have the spirit to shatter the dreams of kids by picking one over the other!" Spectre said in a hushed whisper, covering her mic. "Pumpkin, you do it."

Pumpkin looked out over the crowd, shielding her eyes from the blinding lights. "Alright, raise your hands if you have questions!"

Nearly every hand shot up in the air, and Pumpkin pointed randomly to a boy in the second row.

"What do you plan to do if there is a nuclear war?"

Pumpkin furrowed her brow, looking back over her shoulder at the other two who seemed equally befuddled, having prepped for questions like 'where did your magic come from' or 'can you give me powers'.

"I think we'll have to cross that bridge when we get there, but we would do our best to protect everyone!" Spectre said quickly. "Who's next?"

"What's your favorite dinosaur?"

* * *

The questions continued for about an hour, ranging from the expected "favorites" questions, and questions about being a magical girl, to the wholly unexpected, such as a man in the back asking about a plan to alleviate national debt or how to better foreign relations.

"I think question time is over now," Sofía said with a pout, a resounding aww echoing through the room. "But remember! You can beat the bad guys if you are brave and face your fears! That's what makes you a Pretty Cure, and all of you can do that."

"That's right," Bing added, "It's okay to be scared, someone once said courage is not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it."

Fay nodded encouragingly, "The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear. It was Nelson Mandela that said that!"

"What a lovely message!" the coordinator agreed, emerging from the wings and joining in the applause. "And a lovely tie-in to the end of our session surprise. Some students of the Red Hawk Elementary School were so inspired by the story of the Pretty Cure that they have created gifts for you that they would like to present. Everyone, if you would like to line up and come on stage, you can tell the audience about what you made and give your gift to the Pretty Cure!"

A small line of kids formed and walked up the steps to the stage, each clutching a paper in their hands. A brunette girl approached the microphone, clearing her throat before speaking.

"My name is Maisie Connor, and if I were a Spooky Pretty Cure my name would be Cure Lycan. I would have a big yellow skirt and bow like this, and I would be hairy like a werewolf. Thank you." There was scattered applause, and the girl turned around to give her drawing of herself as a Pretty Cure to the girls who collectively awwed and took turns hugging the girl, even Bing whose anxieties seemed to have been muted by the sweet gesture.

The next girl was tall and lanky, a portion of her long hair obscuring one eye. "My name is Roz del Mar, and if I were a Pretty Cure my name would be Cure Kelpie and I would look like this." She held out her image to the audience briefly before turning and presenting the girls with her image, and receiving her hugs as the next child approached.

"If I were a Pretty Cure, my name would be Cure Zombie and I'd have a pretty black dress and bite the monsters."

Two girls approached the microphone at the same time, appearing to be sisters as they briefly squabbled over who got to talk first.

"I came up with mine first and I'm older so I get to go first! My name is Bonnie Diaz and if I were a Pretty Cure I would be called Cure Bon-bon and I would do ballet while I fight bad guys."

"And I am Madeline Diaz and I would be Cure Masquerade, because I like Halloween costumes and dressing up."

The sisters handed over their drawings, and argued more as they crossed the stage over which they liked better.

Next, a serious looking girl approached the microphone, brushing her long pigtails over her shoulders. "My name is Capucine Metaxas. I would be a spider Pretty Cure named Cure Arachna and I'd have a long green ponytail."

A little girl wearing a cat-print sweater scurried across the stage, pulling the microphone down to her level. "Hi, I'm Felicity and I want to be a brave cat Pretty Cure! I would be called Cure Noir and I would have a big bow that looks like cat ears."

"My name is Aria," the next girl mumbled into the mic, fiddling with her black hair nervously. "And I want to be a Pretty Cure named Cure Pixie, and have white hair and a sparkly white dress."

The next girl stumbled on her way to the center of the stage, much to the Cures' dismay, but she got back to her feet quickly and shuffled forward. "I'm Bianca Blake, and if I was a Pretty Cure warrior I would be Cure Skull, and I would want black and white stripes everywhere on my costume and maybe a little skull clip in my hair."

"Hello, my name is Layali Bahar. My family is Arabic so I would want to be an Arabic theme monster. My name would be Cure Genie and I would want to have a gold outfit and long beautiful hair."

"If I were a Pretty Cure I would want long red hair and red bows everywhere! And my name would be Cure Banshee! And I would scream and yell and sing at the monsters and my magic voice would make them go away!"

Another girl crossed the stage, pausing a moment before speaking to pull out a headband with little devil horns and place them gingerly on her head. "I would like to be Cure Devil, and fight with a pretty pitchfork that has hearts on the end."

"L-like human hearts?" Spectre asked, looking concerned.

"No like candy hearts," the girl explained, showing them on her picture.

The last girl seemed annoyed at having to wait so long for her turn, clearing her throat and speaking with the utmost precise diction. "I am Clemence Fledger, and as an avid historian I would be Cure Bandage, a magic warrior based on the mummies of ancient Egypt."

After receiving her hugs and returning to her seat, the Pretty Cure stepped forward.

"Thank you all so much for having us!" Spectre cheered.

"We will do our best to continue keeping Red Hollow safe!" Pumpkin agreed, looking at Witch to add her piece.

"What do you say we go out on a bang?" the mischievous witch grinned, tracing her hand down her left arm and producing her wand from her palm. "Wands at the ready ladies!"

The other two summoned their wands, raising them above their heads as Witch had done.

"1, 2, 3!"

Each girl cast her spell straight up into the air, the amalgamation of magic producing a glittering light show above them that made the crowd roar with glee. In a flash the three detransformed, and waved as they exited the stage.

Fulfilling their promise for a photo shoot with some of the staff afterwards, and obliging the girls who submitted art to them with a little photo op too, they finally piled back into the car headed for Fay's.

"Damn, I'll probably sleep well enough tonight without the tea," Sofía groaned, blinking her eyes forcefully in an attempt to stay awake.

Fay nodded, "I've never had to talk about myself so much, except maybe my first day of school," she mused.

"Eh, I'm used to it," Bing said, stretching her legs out on the back seat. "That's what you have to deal with when you're popular."

* * *

The tent didn't get long to set up, and the s'mores just as quick to make. With three sleeping bags lined up in their little nylon shelter, the girls clamored in.

"Yeah, I won't be needing that tea either," Bing mumbled, leaning over and giving Sofía a quick goodnight kiss. "Don't be too loud, I've got big games coming up so I really need to get some sleep. Goodnight." She scooted over to give Fay the same goodnight smooch, but paused, raising a brow. "Your face is covered in melted marshmallow."

"Oh, whoopsie!" Fay giggled, rubbing her mouth off on the back of her hand but still giving her girlfriend an uncomfortably sticky smooch. "Goodnight! Once I finish my thermos I'll probably go straight to bed, so don't worry about us being loud!"

True to her word, Fay was asleep as soon as the thermos of tea was empty, which left Sofía lying between the girls and looking up through the clear top of the tent absently stargazing. The longer her eyes remained locked on one spot, the more unfocused her vision became. Sleep tugged at the back of her eyes as she felt her lids sinking lower...and lower…

A harsh rustling outside the tent made her eyes fly open and Sofía gripped the edge of her sleeping bag, her heart racing as she strained to hear over the sound of the blood rushing in her ears. Staring straight ahead at the zippered tent flap, she expected to see the silhouette of someone just beyond the door, but nothing unusual caught her eye. The girl took a steadying breath and relaxed her tensed muscles, shifting her gaze back towards the clear top to stargaze until she actually fell asleep.

Instead of relaxing, she let out a sudden shriek as the pale, empty eyed face of Lady Baphomet peered down at her from above the tent. The other two awoke abruptly, looking around for what had caused all the commotion before they too laid eyes on the figure. With a bang their tent filled with smoke and each girl burst out from the tent in their cure forms, scrambling to catch their breath and confront the goat-headed woman.

"Oh my. It seems you have forgotten you cannot defeat me with the limited powers you currently possess," Lady Baphomet droaned, her voice carrying straight to their ears as though she stood right behind them.

"What are you doing here?" Witch demanded, "The three of us nearly caught you last time, if you hadn't fled we would have won!" she insisted, though her shaking knees took away from the conviction of her words.

"If that's what you think, I suppose you can hold any beliefs you like if it gives you a sense of security."

Pumpkin gritted her teeth. "Hey! Why don't you go back to whatever desolate wasteland you came from and leave us alone you shitbag?!"

"And if you make so much as one step towards my family I'll-" Spectre began, though the concern was clear on her face.

"I'd like to see you stop me."

Pumpkin placed her hand over her heart to summon her wand, but unlike all the times before nothing came to her hand.

Spectre followed suit, but she too was unable to produce her wand.

"Your magic is impacted by fear, is it not? Perhaps you are simply too afraid to attack." Lady Baphomet stood perfectly still, though her tall gangly presence was haunting enough on its own.

"Wh-what?" Witch asked, attempting and failing to summon her own wand while her fingers shook.

"Maybe when you have been caught unawares, you are not brave enough to fight me." The shadow of her body grew taller, now as tall as the Weaver house just beyond them.

"I do have another option for you, rather than fighting me which has proven futile. Simply put on these, and I will return to Frighton and leave all of your families alone." From within the void of her body she produced three terror masks, placing them on the ground at her feet. "The choice is yours, but I will not wait forever." Slowly, one of her long arms reached out to the house, resting her spiderleg fingers beside a window that Spectre knew was her brother's. Even with this realization, she found herself frozen to the spot, petrified with fear.

Without warning, there was an explosion, but not one produced by either party currently present.

"**A beautiful disguise on a lovely night, Cure Masquerade!"**

"**An eccentric dance on a playful night, Cure Skull!"**

"**A watchful weaver on a chilly night, Cure Arachna!"**

A smattering of voices could be heard calling from somewhere within the forest, and both the Cures and Baphomet looked in the direction of all the commotion.

Suddenly, a group of thirteen girls in total burst into the backyard, standing in a long line.

"**We are the Thirteen Guardians, and today is your unlucky day!"**

The girls remained unmoving, absolutely stunned as the new team of cures dashed towards them. With an impish smile, Cure Devil placed her horn headband on her head and quickly summoned a pitchfork, impaling the terror mask before Spectre and reducing it to dust. Bon-bon and Masquerade leapt towards Baphomet, the sisters landing an aggressive kick to the creature's outstretched arm and knocking it away from the window.

Suddenly, Cure Banshee flew through the air, ponytail whipping behind her as she let out a loud scream that shattered the second of the three terror masks before whipping around on her heel and kicking off to headbutt the monster backwards.

Cure Skull pulled her wand out effortlessly, pulling it back before pitching it forward as she shouted "**Pretty Cure Bone Toss!" **Though she slipped after the initial throw, the attack landed and crushed the last of the three masks laid out before the Spooky team.

With a hiss Noir leapt onto Baphomet's head, scratching at the beast's empty eyes as the goat-headed figure began to thrash her head to dislodge her. As she struggled Cure Kelpie slunk up below her, creating a watery mess of grass beneath her. Cure Zombie approached, sticking out a leg which the towering creature tripped over, causing a slip on the marshy land and sending her crashing into the ground, though Zombie's leg came dislocated in the process.

While Noir toppled from Baphomet's head, Cure Lycan was quick to catch her, placing her gingerly on the ground before dashing off with a howl and striking an aggressive punch to the side of the monster's face.

Cure Pixie scuttled over to the three girls who still shook and trembled just beyond the battlefield and cast her fairy dust spell which relaxed the tense trio, and the three took off to check in on the Weaver family.

Whipping out her wand, Arachna aimed it carefully towards the figure who had begun to shrink down. "**Pretty Cure Venom Veil!"**

Still shrinking back to her normal size Baphomet began to writhe, and Cure Genie leapt atop her to pin her down, looking to her team with a decisive nod. As soon as she was secured, Cure Bandage let loose a flurry of wraps that quickly subdued the monster who was now entirely mummified besides one blank black eye socket that peered from behind the wraps.

The three Spooky cures reemerged from the house to see what had become of Lady Baphomet, but as soon as they arrived back outside the figure's voice echoed in their ears. "I will return another day, Pretty Cure. You will not always have the protection of others, soon you will know how it feels to be truly afraid, and alone."

A sudden gust of wind blew Bandage's wraps away from the ominous creature, and she was carried away like smoke on the breeze. The three cures followed the smoke with their eyes until it had dissipated, and then looked across the yard at the group that had come to their aid.

"I don't know what to say," Witch began, looking at the ground in embarrassment. "If you hadn't come to save us…"

"Thank you, we owe you all so much, especially me," Spectre admitted with an air of shame.

Cure Genie shook her head, "No, it was all you!"

Kelpie nodded, "You told us if we were brave and faced our fears, then we could win!"

"And that anyone can be brave!" Pixie added with a gentle smile.

"You inspired us with your bravery!" Banshee cheered in a sing-song voice.

"And that was why we were able to help," Cure Devil explained.

"So don't feel bad, it all came from within you!" Bon-bon encouraged.

The trio breathed a collective sigh of relief, smiling gently. "Well thank you again," Pumpkin said earnestly, raising a hand in salutation.

"Don't mention it!" Cure Noir said with a playful wink.

"Alright team, let's head out!" Lycan barked, taking off for the woods. The rest of the Thirteen Guardians followed suit with a smattering of goodbyes as they disappeared.

* * *

The trio blinked awake snuggled in their sleeping bags the next morning, Sofía rubbing her head and looking up at the sun that streamed through the clear tent top.

"Well I finally got some sleep," she mumbled. "But I had a ridiculous dream…"

Bing nodded, sitting up slowly, "Yeah...same."

The three began to crawl out of the tent, rolling up the sleeping bags as they sat in the yard. Shortly thereafter, Fay noticed that beside her brother's window were five long, jagged scratches in the paint.

* * *

Author's Note:

I really wanted to thank everyone who submitted a fancure, I had a lot of fun working them into the story and looking through everyone's designs! It really touches my heart to see people interested in my work, especially to the extent that they are inspired to create from it. You guys keep me going whenever I feel like things aren't good enough to publish, and your comments really brighten my day! I love you all so so much! So thank you to everyone who reads and comments and shares, and especially the folks listed below who contributed their characters and designs:

sweetcutiecloverdraws from tumblr- Cure Bandage

deency from tumblr- Cure Devil

priestess-draws from tumblr- Cure Banshee

Mister-antonio from tumblr- Cure Genie

Monochromespiral from deviantart- Cure Skull

Mirage-Moonlight from deviantart- Cure Pixie

outerspacekat from tumblr- Cure Noir

futariwadorkycure from tumblr- Cure Masquerade &amp; Cure Bon-bon

TwinklingCupcake from tumblr- Cure Arachna

bishiko from tumblr- Cure Zombie

kokoruu frm tumblr- Cure Kelpie &amp; Cure Lycan


	19. Chapter 19- Revelation

The flurry of clacking keys pitter pattered down the empty halls from the newspaper club room. Five students hunched over their desk with eyes trained on their screens with laser focus. The president of the club sauntered over to one of his writers whose fingers moved markedly slower than those of his teammates.

"Don't lose steam, Devon! It's almost our deadline! I know the school is dying to know more about those Pretty Cure!" the president encouraged, patting the boy aggressively on the back. Devon's bushy brows were knit together tight enough to form premature wrinkles. Time that should have been spent researching the Pretty Cure was instead spent canoodling with Peyton, who doubled as both a lady friend as well as top Pretty Cure informant. Unfortunately, she had been spending more time lately as the former of these roles, and now the boy had next to nothing to say.

Searching the school computer for any notes someone else may have made on the subject, he found one unnamed file on the club's server. A quick scan revealed the names Sofía Lara, Bing Morgan, and Fay Weaver, and at the bottom the author's name. Colette? Devon frowned, drumming his fingers on his lips. What had ever happened to her, anyway? Her absence went mostly unnoticed by those at school, but surely she hadn't been gone too long if she had written something on these girls. After all, they were only recently revealed to be magic superheroes.

With a sly glance from side to side, the boy copied the entirety of the file without bothering to read through, and sending it to the editors. He'd thank Colette next time he saw her, surely she wouldn't mind.

* * *

"Andres?"

Sofía's mother strolled into the kitchen where the freshman sat at the table with half a pizza on his plate. "Yeah?"

"Have you seen Sofía?"

He picked off a pepperoni and mulled over the question as he chewed, finally shaking his head. "I think she's taking a nap in her room."

"Oh, well then would you mind doing the dishes please?"

Andres fussed audibly, "But mom! That's her chore!"

His mother cast a stern look at him, hands resting on her hips. "She is probably tired from being a Pretty Cure! If she can protect the town from monsters you can do the dishes."

Sofía could feel the shift as though it were tangible. Suddenly, it was her stories her parents wanted to hear at the dinner table, and it was she who garnered the bulk of the praise while the dethroned king pouted silently at the other end of the table. Even at school people approached her often with the simplest questions, like what kind of shampoo she used or what her favorite bands were.

And then the school newspaper was published.

No one was all that interested in the newspaper in years prior. The only reason anyone read it was because of the overzealous newspaper club students who stood in every doorway into the school passing them out. A few flipped through the pages absently between classes or during lunch, but most went immediately into the recycling bin.

This year, the front cover piqued everyone's interest.

Sofía had grown used to the attention turning to her when she entered the school, but something about the glances today seemed malicious, hostile. The smile immediately faded from the boy passing out newspapers, and his zeal temporarily went on hold as she walked by without an offer to take a paper.

Glancing from side to side and crossing her arms defensively over her chest, Sofía made a beeline for her old hangout where Audrey and Peyton sat, each girl with a newspaper in their hand.

"Hey guys, what's going on today?" Sofía asked as she approached, "Everyone is acting really weird."

The two on the wall exchanged a worried look, Audrey being the one to extend her newspaper out towards her companion. On the front cover was a photo of the three Pretty Cure at their public appearance for the school district. The title in bold letters above read: SCANDAL! Pretty Cure involved in recent disappearances.

Immediately the icy grip of anxiety crept through Sofía's veins, freezing her limbs in place. Her friends noticed her anxiousness, and Peyton finally spoke up softly. "Is it true? Do you know what happened to all those people?" she murmured, refusing to make eye contact.

"I-I mean-" Sofía flipped to the story as soon as she could will her hands to move.

_One of our senior writers, Colette has gone missing. What she left behind was a chilling article about the true nature of the Pretty Cure, written well before their public appearance at the Aspen Grove High School marching invitational. Included were photographs of animal abuse, and reports of lying and manipulation to cover up supernatural encounters that may have lead to the disappearances of several locals including Redwood High alum Emily Swanson, and even Colette herself._

Sofía shut the paper, fingers beginning to shake as she looked up at her friends. "I promise, it's not like that! We were fighting to save those people, and we've saved so many!"

"How come none of the survivors are coming forward to defend you then," Audrey pressed, intent on getting answers.

"Well...they don't remember. Usually people don't remember their encounters with us or the monsters from Frighton. And we don't abuse animals those monsters are made out of fear!"

"They don't...remember?" Peyton asked worriedly.

"It says that some people saw you all fighting monsters at Homecoming, is that true?" Audrey continued interrogating.

"Y-yes we did! We saved everyone!"

"Did you erase our memories?" Peyton breathed, touching her hand to her mouth as she held back tears. "I mean...I figured you had your reasons for not telling us you were superheroes but I wouldn't think that you'd ever do something like that…"

"Hello everyone!" Fay quipped suddenly, approaching from just a ways away. "Have you noticed everyone's acting-" the look on Sofía and Peyton's faces said enough, and she trailed off slowly.

"We need to talk," Sofía said sternly, grabbing Fay's hand. "Please guys just...trust me. I promise it's not as bad as it sounds." With a tug she pulled Fay along behind her down the hallway while she tapped a text to Bing with her free hand to see where she was. "Colette apparently wrote some article about us, and now everyone's suspicious," she explained briefly to a bewildered Fay, passing her the newspaper tucked under her arm. "But it doesn't make sense, how would she possibly know?"

Fay pressed her lips into a thin line as she scanned the paper, "When I first met her, she told me to stay away from you and Bing. She told me you were liars. Maybe she saw you fighting and ran away before you could rewrite the story?"

As the pair rounded a corner they spotted Bing pleading with Saanvi. "You don't understand! We were protecting people!"

"Why didn't you call the police when this started happening?" Saanvi asked, clutching the paper in her balled up fist. "Why couldn't you tell me?!"

"Do you think they would have believed us?" Bing asked in exasperation, "Would you have believed us? Besides, we weren't supposed to reveal it to the world, Boo told us-"

"Who is Boo?"

"A...bat fairy. She's an expert on Frighton, the place where the monsters are coming from. She used to be a Pretty Cure like us, she's like a mentor!" she attempted to explain, though the look on Saanvi's face made it clear she wasn't doing a good job. "This has happened before! She defeated Frighton and now it's our turn."

Sofía and Fay approached the pair cautiously, and Saanvi tensed as she saw them, turning on her heel. "I've got to get to class." Her exit left Bing visibly shaken, and she turned towards her partners with her lips pursed as she attempted to keep from crying.

"Let's go," she mumbled, shuffling off down the hall. The other two followed close behind as she led them to her secret hideaway amongst the library storage before she collapsed into the neglected armchair. "Why is this happening?"

"I don't know," Sofía murmured, reaching out to give her girlfriend's hand a reassuring squeeze. "I think...maybe they are afraid because they don't understand."

Fay nodded slowly, "To them this must look really bad…"

"But we are telling the truth!" Bing cried out, a few tears of frustration finally breaking loose and rolling down her cheeks in an emotional outburst the other two had never seen from their stoic partner. "What else are we supposed to do?!"

Both girls wrapped their arms around her in a tight embrace, feeling her shake and quiver between them. "I think all we can do is keep doing what's right, and telling the truth," Fay said gently, looking to Sofía for confirmation.

She nodded, "Yeah...I mean we know as well as anyone that people aren't rational when they're afraid...and this is something really unusual. We should just continue as normal…"

Bing sniffled and shook her head, "I can't go to class today...can we just leave?"

The two girls nodded, and Fay leaned in to press a gentle kiss against the girl's temple. "Yeah, why don't we go for a walk?"

* * *

For a long time, no one spoke. The girls waited until the hallways cleared up before sneaking out of their hiding place amongst the tattered books and walked with leaden feet and heavy hearts for Sofía's car. They drove in silence until they pulled into a small lot outside a local park where they ambled listlessly along the walking trail.

Fay unbuttoned her cardigan and tied it around her waist, rolling her broad shoulders and rubbing her neck, hoping that something, anything would dissipate the tension. Sofía picked at imaginary dirt underneath her nails, brown eyes sweeping from one side of the path to the other. Bing's arms swung loosely at her sides, and her head tilted forward so her thick bangs obscured her eyes which fixated blankly on the ground before her.

No one from the trio broke the silence, but rather a soft voice from a little further down the path, followed by little thudding footsteps on the wooden bridge just ahead.

"Pretty Cure!"

Evelyn skidded to a stop just before them and threw her arms around Sofía's legs. "I'm so happy to see you all again!"

Sofía's face softened, and she crouched down to Evelyn's level to give the girl a hug. "Hey there kiddo, how have you been?"

"Good! I saw you guys on the news! You're famous now!"

Sofía smiled weakly, looking up at Fay. "Fay, this is Evelyn. She was there the day I first transformed. And Evelyn, this is my other girlfriend-"

"Cure Spectre!" Evelyn bounced up, now wrapping her arms around Fay's legs. "And Cure Pumpkin, you're all here! Where is Boo?"

The three thought for a moment, each shrugging uncertainly. "She is probably in the woods, trying to find a way to stop the monsters," Sofía concluded. "I suppose since we're not in school we could go visit her and at least be useful…"

"Can I come?!" Evelyn asked, balling up her little fists excitedly.

"I don't see why not," Sofía replied, Evelyn rushing over to Bing's side and holding her hand as the crew set off.

Bing looked down at the girl, cracking a smile for the first time that day. "Why aren't you in school, huh?"

"I'm out for the day!" Evelyn cheered. "And I'm allowed to play in the park as long as I'm home by dark." Sofía snorted. No wonder the kid got in so much trouble with all the mysterious goings on, she had those new wave free range parents.

"Why aren't youuu in school?" Evelyn questioned, puffing out her mottled cheeks and squinting her eyes suspiciously. The three averted their gaze, each trying to come up with a good excuse for their ditching.

"We're...just not having a good day," Bing finally admitted.

Evelyn gasped, looking genuinely distraught. "What's wrong? I learned it's always good to talk about your feelings."

"Some people at our school are afraid of the Pretty Cure." Fay attempted to explain the situation gently, "They don't understand our powers, or what we're fighting, so they're getting worried about us."

"Hmm that does sound bad," Evelyn agreed. "But you're not bad guys. They'll see eventually!" she encouraged with childish enthusiasm.

* * *

Upon arriving at the gnarled tree they spotted Boo easily as her mauve backside wiggled in an attempt to free her head from the knot in the tree that she had stuffed it in.

"Boo!" Evelyn cheered jovially, running over with coiled hair bouncing behind her to grasp the fairy and pluck her out from the knot with ease. The fairy gasped, shaking her head and looking up at the child who held her.

"Where does this kid keep coming from, boo?!" she groaned in exasperation as Evelyn squeezed her tight.

"What were you doing in that hole?" she asked curiously, the trio nodding with curiosity.

The fairy averted her pink gaze, "N-nothing, boo."

"Do you have any ideas for getting us to Frighton?" Sofía questioned hopefully.

Boo wriggled her way out of the child's grasp and floated over to the small crevice in the ground where she had claimed to awaken from. "I think the answers are down there, boo. What have you noticed about our enemies?"

The three girls looked at one another in confusion.

"They're all freaky looking?" Fay suggested weakly.

"They all really dark black?" Bing offered.

"And they all go splat when we purify them!" Sofía added cheerfully.

Boo gestured to Sofía with a smile, "That's right, boo! And what happens after they, as you say, go splat?" Evelyn waddled over to the fairy and picked her up yet again, rubbing her cheek on the top of Boo's head.

"Uhh…" Sofía scrunched up her face and looked at the ground.

"They melt and sink?" Bing asked uncertainly, "Like, the stuff goes into the ground. Usually."

"Right, boo! I think that means underground somewhere must be how they're all getting here. They go back into the ground and get reformed, boo."

Bing wrinkled her nose in disgust, "So you think there's a pool of that black sticky stuff down there?"

Boo nodded enthusiastically, "Yes! I just need to find out where it goes and where it's coming from, and then I'll know how to get to Frighton, boo."

"What about the creepy tree? Does that not have anything to do with it?" Fay asked, looking over at the looming eyesore. Boo faltered.

"Uh...maybe. I don't know."

"Maybe all the gunk comes from the trees!" Evelyn gasped suddenly. "Like how maple syrup comes out of trees."

Sofía nodded thoughtfully, "Anyone know anything about tapping trees?" she asked with a laugh. Everyone shook their head.

"I think the best plan is for me to go underground and begin looking, boo," the fairy said sternly. "Since I'm the only one small enough to fit in the hole."

"I could blow the hole up and make it bigger," Bing suggested with a cheeky grin.

Fay's eyes widened, "I'm not sure that's a good idea. We should probably lay low, Pretty Cure wise. Right now only the school knows about what Colette wrote, but I bet the news will get wind of it soon. Maybe even the police."

"The police can't catch us!" Sofía cried out indignantly, "We're magic!"

"Not the kind of magic that can sneak out of handcuffs or bust open a jail cell unnoticed," Bing pointed out wryly. "And that'll only make us look worse, I think we need to cooperate as much as possible."

"Jail?! But we're kids, we wouldn't go to jail," Sofía insisted, alarmed at the suggestion of prison time.

"We are all 18," Bing said gently.

"Not me, I'm only 17!" Fay cheered. "Once I'm out of juvenile detention, Boo and I can defeat Frighton and set you free!"

"You just had a birthday!" Sofía reminded.

"Oh, right."

"Hey, Boo?" Bing piped up, "Do you think...maybe you could turn back into a Pretty Cure and help us?" The three all looked expectantly at the fairy who wriggled out of Evelyn's grip once again.

"I...I don't know," she admitted, floating gently to the ground. "I suppose I could try."

Sofía held out her Bon-Bomb, setting it on the ground before the pink bat, "Here, maybe this will help."

The fairy picked up the Bon-Bomb and held it carefully between her paws as Sofía beckoned Evelyn over to them and away from the fairy. There was a pregnant pause as the girls all looked expectantly ahead, the fairy closing her eyes and focusing her energies. Somewhere in her heart she could feel the tug. The small remnants of her former self begging to be set free once again. She inhaled deeply, filling her lungs with air and her heart with energy as she raised the Bon-Bomb with one paw stretched skyward.

"**Nightmares nevermore! Trick-or-treat transformation!"**

Her voice echoed through the trees and she flew up into the air a ways before throwing down the Bon-Bomb with all her might.

As soon as it collided with the ground, it bounced up again and rolled over to Sofía's feet, letting out the smallest little fart of purple smoke and nothing more. Boo lowered carefully to the ground, striking a pose.

"A flutter of wings on a hallowed-"

"Boo!"

Suddenly the fairy opened her eyes and looked down at herself, realizing she was completely unchanged. Discouraged, she flopped face first into the grass. "I guess I can't become a Pretty Cure anymore, boo," she muttered dejectedly.

"That's okay, you're still good at being Boo," Evelyn encouraged, rushing up to her favorite fairy friend and scooping her up in another tight embrace.

"She's right," Sofía added with a gentle smile. "It's okay that you can't transform, I'm sure we'll think of something. No matter what anyone thinks of us, we'll protect everyone from their fear. Right?"

Fay and Bing nodded, the three girls closing in around Evelyn and hugging her and Boo tightly.

"I love you Pretty Cure! I won't let anyone say anything bad about you," Evelyn insisted, puffing out her chest.

Boo smiled weakly, closing her eyes and hugging the child's arms loosely and soaking in the warmth of the others' embrace.

"I love you too, Pretty Cure."


	20. Chapter 20- Collapse

"So, does anyone happen to have a pocket knife or something?" Bing asked, placing her hand on the withered old tree. The trio, their child companion, and her best fairy friend spent the entire afternoon hiding out in the woods, and trying to come up with a way to find the source of the black goop that spawned those terrible monsters.

"I do!" Fay chirped, flipping out a swiss army knife with surprising quickness and offering it to Bing who stared blankly at her angel-faced partner holding the blade with innocent sincerity before taking it off her.

With a shaky hand she touched the tip of the knife ever so gently against the trunk of the tree, half expecting the gruesome thing to shrink away from the blade. "Alright, here goes nothing…" she breathed, plunging the knife into the bark and ripping it out just as quickly. Everyone watched and waited quietly to see if any black sap dribbled from the tree. Nothing happened.

Sofía approached the tree and inspected the wound curiously. "Maybe the knife isn't long enough?" she wondered aloud, "How far do you have to cut to get sap?"

"No one here is exactly a woodsman, boo," the fairy replied wryly while Evelyn petted absently between her pink ears.

With a grunt of frustration, Bing knelt down beside the winding roots and began making quick punctures into the ground around them. Each time, nothing but dirt turned up on the knife, and defeated she handed it back to Fay.

"I don't knoooow," Bing fussed, flopping on her back in the grass and looking up at the sky, noticing the sun had descended further than she thought. "Hey, anyone got the time?"

"Uhh...5:17," Sofía replied, reading off her phone, "Why?"

"Shit! I've got a volleyball game tonight. Sof, can you take me back?"

"Sure!" Sofía agreed, fishing out her car keys, "I'll even come to the game, I've got nothing else better to do," she admitted with a weak laugh. "I'm sure my brother will be thrilled to tell my parents about my fall from grace at dinner tonight. Fay, you free?"

Fay nodded, "I'd love to go!"

"Great, then why don't we go take Evelyn home and then-"

"But I wanna come too!"

They all turned to face the girl who bore a stern pout, clutching Boo protectively and boring holes in their hearts with her dark eyes.

"Won't your parents be worried about you?" Fay asked gently, "If you stay out late they'll miss you!"

Evelyn shook her head adamantly, "I'm allowed to go where I want! And I want to go to the game!"

"Okay okay okay, we'll take you to the game but after we're going to take you straight home!" Sofía insisted. Having gotten her way, Evelyn's expression softened, and she began to skip back the way they had come, humming a cheery tune.

"Kids are so stressful," Bing murmured, rubbing her temples.

* * *

With their mini day-cation, the girls had been able to temporarily forget the drama that was going on at school. Unfortunately, they received a quick reminder of it as soon as they got back to the campus. The abundance of quick sidelong glances didn't go unnoticed by Fay and Sofía as they crossed through the gym to take their seat with Evelyn in tow. She had stuffed Boo into the front pocket of her sweatshirt as they approached the building, and pet her gently as they found a spot on the bleachers.

Seeing the looks on the faces of the cures, Evelyn removed her hands from her pocket and held one hand from each girl, giving them both a gentle squeeze. "Don't be sad! I promised I would tell everyone how great you are, and I mean it! No one is allowed to say anything mean."

The solemn cures smiled, each returning the gentle squeeze. Looking out onto the court, Sofía noticed a bit of commotion had begun between the two opposing coaches and the referees. Beside each coach stood two students, presumably the captains. The two on the opposing team stared at Bing, who stood beside her coach with Saanvi, though the two didn't speak.

"I think it's unfair to let her play," the opposing coach insisted, "I mean how are my girls supposed to compete against some superhuman?"

"I don't have any powers when I'm not transformed!" Bing insisted desperately.

One of the other team's captains snorted, "How do we know you won't secretly transform in the middle of the game?"

Bing rolled her eyes, "Because it's a big dramatic spectacle, you'd notice. My hair would turn orange and my outfit would change, I can't exactly make it a secret. Please, I've done nothing to be benched!"

The referees nodded slowly, processing and speaking in hushed whispers to one another. "We'll allow you to play, but we will also be keeping an extra close eye on you. If you try to cheat, you will be caught."

With all the logistics sorted, the teams lined up at the net to greet one another before the game finally began. Bing could feel blistering pinpricks on her skin from the pointed gazes in her direction. Even after everyone took their position, all eyes fixated warily on the volleyball prince. After the first serve by the other team, the ball flew over towards Bing, who raised her hands to set. "Mine!" she called out, shuffling to the side to position herself better below the ball.

"Got it!" Saanvi cried out shortly thereafter, taking a few quick steps back and crashing into Bing who stood right behind her. The two fell to the floor and so did the ball, earning cheers from the opposing team.

"Why did you do that?" Bing snapped, getting to her feet, "I had it!"

"I didn't know if I could trust you with it," Saanvi said briskly, walking back to her position.

Bing's brows lowered angrily, tears once again stinging at the back of her eyes as she returned to her own spot. The ball bounced back and forth a few times before Bing had another perfect shot, and she jumped at the net to block, sending the ball straight back down over the net onto the opponent's side.

"Hey!" the coach yelled, running up to the closest referee, "That jump was way too high for a normal girl!"

Bing whipped her head around, fists clenched, "No it wasn't! I've always been able to jump that high! Right coach?" she turned to her own coach whose eyes were downcast and his arms crossed uncomfortably over his chest.

"Look, this game is going to take forever if they keep stopping us to complain," the coach finally spoke, Bing taking a step back in surprise. "Why don't you just sit this one out? I am afraid the refs might make a bad call because they're too busy watching you anyway, and that would hurt our chances…"

"But that's not fair! What's to stop everyone from having me sit out the next game? And every game after that until the end of the season? I haven't done anything-"

"Bing," Saanvi approached the girl, resting a hand on her shoulder. "It's what's best for the team. We can talk after the game, okay?"

"No! Saanvi why can't you just trust me?!"

Pulling her hand away, Saanvi clenched two tight fists at her sides as she shook with tremors of anger and sadness, "Because you erased my memory! How am I supposed to trust you when I don't know everything you've done?!"

Bing's chest strained under the weight of all the feelings that throbbed in her heart, and her throat tightened to keep in all the words of a budding emotional outburst until she could hardly breathe. She couldn't let it all come tumbling out, what might become of her then? Without warning she took off running, across the court and out the doors followed by murmurs of dissent from the crowd, and the teams.

Evelyn stood abruptly, pulling Boo out from her pocket and clutching the fairy to her chest as she hopped down the bleachers for the door. "Pumpkin, come back!"

Fay and Sofía tensed, immediately bolting after the little girl. Just beyond the gym doors Fay scooped her up in her arms, hugging her close. "Sweetheart, don't run off like that!" she crooned softly.

"But Pumpkin is upset!" Evelyn cried.

"Fay, take Evelyn home. I'll go find Bing," Sofía said sternly, turning for the front door.

"Oh, but don't-" Fay began timidly.

"I can handle this myself! Just get her home, okay?" Sofía shouted back, jogging for the door while Fay visibly deflated, setting Evelyn back on the ground.

Gently she took the child's hand in her own, "Do you know how to get to your house from here?" Fay asked softly, her voice feeble and wounded. Evelyn nodded, pulling her in the right direction. Boo drifted up from the girl's grasp, nesting gently on her fluffy hair and looking up at Fay with concern.

"This isn't good," Evelyn murmured, shaking her head slowly.

Fay looked down at the child, "Why is that?"

"Everyone is so upset!"

"You're right," Fay's words carried on the exhale of a sigh. "But...it's all true. Everything they're are afraid of...is real. People are disappearing, and it is our fault, and we knew about it but didn't tell anyone...we have been changing everyone's memory so they wouldn't find out...how do you stop people from being afraid when it's all real?"

Evelyn pouted, giving Fay's hand a firm tug, which startled the girl with tears brimming in her eyes. "No! You haven't hurt anybody! The Pretty Cure have been trying to help! Just because you couldn't stop it doesn't mean it's your fault it happened!" she insisted.

"She's right, boo," the fairy chimed in, "You always had everyone's best interest in mind, they just don't know the full story, boo! The unknown is scary."

A weak smile pulled across Fay's trembling lips, and she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, "Thanks, you two. I guess...it's all just gotten bigger than I thought it would. Frighton always seemed like some far away enemy but now...everything is so close to home."

"Speaking of close to home, my house is right down this street! You should go find Witch," Evelyn piped up. Fay looked perplexed, staring down the dark street that Evelyn had stopped at.

"No...I should walk you up to your house. It's getting late, your parents should know you were at least with an adult," she said gently, which seemed to upset the little patchwork girl.

Boo narrowed her eyes, looking down the dark twisting street. "You live...here, boo?"

Evelyn nodded, "It's old but I like it here," she said softly, though she didn't make any movement down the sidewalk. "Really, I can go home from here myself!"

"I really think I should go with you," Fay insisted a little more firmly, though any real conviction had long since left her for the day.

The girl looked distressed, but said nothing. "Okay, let's go." Most of the houses stood in varying stages of disrepair, and Fay had never been in an area of Red Hollow that looked this old. One or two of the houses had lights on inside that seeped through closed curtains, but most loomed dark and presumably empty. Evelyn stopped at one of the few houses with a light on inside with a small smile, letting go of Fay's hand and giving Boo to her before climbing up the steps.

"Thanks for walking me home, Spectre! Now go find Witch and help Pumpkin!" Fay lingered at the bottom of the steps, straining to see any shadows of people beyond the curtains.

"Are your parents home?" she asked cautiously, "I don't want to leave you here alone…"

"Yep! Look, the light is on!" she insisted, pointing to the window. Evelyn placed one hand on the doorknob, raising the other to wave farewell.

Fay took a few steps back up the street, looking back over her shoulder uncertainly to find Evelyn had already gone inside. "I feel bad just dropping her off at the doorstep like that…" she murmured quietly, looking down at Boo. The fairy was frozen, staring intently at the house as they walked away. "Is something wrong?"

"That was my house, boo," she breathed, suddenly gripping Fay's arm tightly. "That was my house!"

"Wh-what?" Fay barely had time to process what she meant before the fairy leapt from her hands and fluttered rapidly back towards the old building.

"Dad! Dad are you in there, boo! It's me! It's Milena!" she wailed, reaching the house and pounding her tiny paws against the window.

"Boo!" Fay called, jogging back towards the house. The door opened slowly and Evelyn poked her head out.

"What are you doing?" the girl asked, looking concerned.

"This is my house!" Boo cried, tears running down her mauve cheeks. "This is where I lived...before...before…"

"Before what?" Evelyn asked, stepping outside and shutting the door behind her.

"Before...I went to Frighton!" Boo wailed, continuing to pound on the window.

Evelyn reached out slowly, attempting to comfort the fairy. "You went to Frighton? How?" Boo flew away from her hand, standing on the porch railing.

"I...I went through a portal! A portal in the forest!" Boo sniffled, making no move to wipe her face as her tears dotted the old wood.

With a confused and pained expression, Evelyn took another step towards her, but she only backed away further. "Where was the portal in the forest?" the girl asked softly.

"It was...it was…" the bat sputtered, searching for words. "It was underground...there was an old gate...we planted a tree above it to mark its place!"

"Look out!" Fay screamed, frozen to her spot on the sidewalk and pointing just beyond the pair. Past the porch on the far side of the house stood a shadowy figure, ominously still with a pale face and long black horns.

Both Evelyn and Boo followed her gesture to look behind them, spying Lady Baphomet immediately. A small explosion shook the creaky old houses and a newly transformed Cure Spectre rushed from the smoke towards the pair. Baphomet moved quickly, unimpeded by the laws of earthly motion as suddenly she appeared on the porch, reaching out for Boo.

"No!" Spectre and Evelyn cried in unison while the Cure summoned her wand. Evelyn lunged forward and grabbed ahold of the fairy, throwing her as hard as she could towards Spectre. The bat tumbled through the air, finally righting herself and turning back to see Evelyn face to face with the goat-headed beast.

"**Pretty Cure Cobweb Curse!"**

The spell flew rapidly towards the girl, the shimmering tendrils of the web securing firmly around Evelyn's torso. With a sharp tug Spectre pulled the child towards her, but she was stopped just as abruptly when the pitch black hands of Lady Baphomet closed around Evelyn's arm.

"Evelyn!" Spectre shrieked, pulling harder on the magical thread that connected the two of them while Baphomet silently drew closer to the child. As Lady Baphomet reached the girl she hunched over and pulled her into an embrace, Evelyn slowly beginning to sink into the black void of her body as she struggled.

"I believe in you...Pretty Cure!" Evelyn wheezed as the monster held her tighter. "Boo...I know you can...find it. Take them to Frighton...I won't give up hope!" She smiled weakly, holding out a hand as she sunk deeper and deeper until nothing remained. As soon as the child was engulfed the glittering thread that tied her to Spectre's wand snapped, and Baphomet stood upright. With a sudden gust of wind she was gone, and Spectre collapsed to her hands and knees in the street while Boo trembled.

Spectre let out an anguished cry of frustration, tossing her wand to the side and standing back to her feet, the wand disappearing in a puff of blue smoke as it collided with the ground. Sprinting as fast as her legs would move Spectre took the porch steps in one great stride and pounded on the door to Evelyn's house.

"Please open up, Evelyn has been kidnapped!" she cried against the door. With her fourth knock the door creaked open unexpectedly. Spectre pushed her way inside without a second thought, but found the interior to be entirely bare, a small candle near the window the only object in the entire house.

Boo poked her head in, looking around the barren remains of her old home. "D-dad?! Dad where are you?! It's Milena! I'm home, boo!" Spectre scooped up Boo who began struggling desperately in her grip, "Let me go!"

"Boo, no one is here!" Spectre insisted, "It doesn't look like anyone has been here in a long, long time. We have to find the others so we can save Evelyn." Placing the bat on her shoulder, the Cure spun around quickly and tore out of the house and down the street while Boo's tearful eyes remained locked on the house. "Sofía! Bing!" Spectre called desperately, whipping around the corner and down the main road and heading back towards the school, her long blue ponytail whipping furiously behind her.

"Sofía! Bing!"

Boo collected herself enough to fly on ahead, looking for the remaining Cures as Spectre shouted, drawing loads of unwanted attention and disapproving eyes as she did.

"I don't know where they would be, boo," the fairy whimpered, eyes wild with panic.

"I know a place we can try," Spectre replied, holding the pink bat close to her chest and turning down the street of the school. Inside the library storage room she found Bing curled up in one of the old armchairs, her face obscured behind her knees.

She looked up as Spectre opened the door, only to hide her tear-stained face behind her legs once more.

"Don't look at me," she pleaded, but Spectre approached and threw her arms tightly around the girl, beginning to cry into her shoulder.

"E-Evelyn is gone," she whispered, unable to speak up after all the shouting and crying had thrashed her voice. "Baphomet took her...we need to get to Frighton now. We have to end this."

Bing sat up in surprise, only now noticing that her girlfriend was in her cure form. "Where's Sofía?"

"She went out looking for you...we need to find her."

* * *

Sofía gripped the steering wheel tight enough for her knuckles to go white, driving slow down the streets of Red Hollow with her window rolled down. "Bing? Bing are you out there?" she called again, though her voice belied her uncertainty of receiving a response. Still, she refused to stop. She would find her, and she would make all of this right. If she was the one who got the others wrapped up into this Pretty Cure nonsense then she would be the one to take the blame, not them. If she had been able to take down Frighton herself, they would never have...

Two loud thumps made Sofía jump and slam on the brakes as the impacts shook the car. Looking in her rearview mirror she spied the legs of Pumpkin and Spectre standing on her trunk.

"What the hell are you two doing?!" Sofía demanded, pulling the car over to the side of the street before getting out and slamming the door. "Why are you transformed?!"

"Lady Baphomet took Evelyn," Spectre said sternly. "We need to get to Frighton, now." Sofía's eyes widened, and she looked from the two girls to Boo in dismay.

"B-but we don't know how?!" she cried, running her fingers through the front of her hair.

"I know there is an underground portal in the woods, boo," the fairy replied with conviction. "I will find it."

* * *

Running up to the old tree, the girls looked about for any sign of Lady Baphomet, or Evelyn. Everything looked exactly as it had when they had left earlier that day, a remnant of a happier time only hours before.

"Pumpkin. Blow up the hole to make it bigger, boo," Boo instructed, floating over towards the crevice in the ground.

Pumpkin pulled her wand from her chest, though she held it uncertainly. "What about lying low? What if this makes everyone-"

"We don't have time to be careful anymore, boo," Boo insisted. With that Pumpkin aimed a carefully placed fireball at the small crevice, blowing it wide open.

"I'll go first, but I want all of you to come down once I say it's clear, boo," the fairy explained slowly. "Use the flame on your bonewick wands to see." Without another word Boo slipped into the darkness of the hole, and the three loomed at the edge, waiting for the sound of her voice. The silence crept through their bones as they clutched the rim of the cavern until the stillness dissipated with the echo of a voice.

"Okay, jump!"

The trio looked at one another with uncertainty. With deliberate gentleness, Witch held Spectre's face in her hands and pressed a solemn kiss to her lips. Turning to Pumpkin, she offered another small piece of silent encouragement. Carefully learning over their partner, Spectre and Pumpkin locked lips for a fleeting moment. Smiling weakly, Witch linked arms with the girls on either side of her and took a deep breath. "We'll go down together." The other two nodded, sharing a hesitant smile as they readied themselves.

"One, two, three, jump!"


	21. Chapter 21- Help

_Author's Note: This chapter has content that may be triggering for some. Warnings for intense unreality, and general creepiness. If these subjects are upsetting for you, I do not recommend continuing this chapter. Instead, feel free to contact me for a trigger-free summary of events so you can finish the story without missing anything!_

_For those confident in continuing, I hope you enjoy!_

* * *

The fall felt endless.

None of the girls made a sound, not even the slightest of gasps as they plummeted through the darkness. When their feet finally hit the ground they each tumbled forward a few steps, unlinking their arms as they tried to catch their balance. Each girl held their wand out before them to light the walls of the strange underground cavern that shimmered with moisture.

"Why is it so wet down here?" Witch thought aloud, approaching one of the stone walls and placing a hand on it gently. The walls felt smooth and slimy to the touch, and when she pulled her hand away Witch saw a thin coating of black goo across the palm of her hand. "Eww!"

Wiping her hand off on her skirt and wondering briefly if Pretty Cure outfits were self-cleaning, Witch hurried after the group that began to traverse down the long corridor.

"What are we looking for, Boo?" Pumpkin asked the fairy who flew just ahead of them with her eyes trained ahead with steely resolve.

"A gate. The gate between this world, and Frighton."

Spectre held her wand up high to examine the ceiling, "And how do you know which direction to go?"

Boo gestured with her heart-dotted wing towards the ground. All three girls lowered their makeshift torches to see the black goo that lined the walls was also glistening on the cavern floor. It slithered along the ground down the gradual decline of the pathway, moving like goopy little slugs all headed in the same direction.

The group followed the trail of sludge in relative silence, though even the slightest of tremors in their breath echoed through the corridor. The three Cures huddled close to one another, holding their flame-tipped wands aloft and casting flickering shadows that danced across the walls amongst the wet substance that inched its way towards their feet.

A loud squelch reverberated down the tunnel and Spectre let out a yelp, jumping aside and gripping Witch's shoulders. "I-I stepped in something," she stammered, hunching over and cowering behind the much smaller girl.

Pumpkin lowered her wand towards the floor, and all three jumped at the sight of what likely used to be a dread. It retained its pointed, featureless face, and some semblance of front legs, but its entire back half trailed behind it in a half-melted heap. Dragging itself along with its front legs, the rest of it seemed to be melting still, climbing further up its body. The light from Pumpkin's wand made it hiss, though even its mouth couldn't open fully as the sides began to melt shut.

"We need to keep moving, boo," the fairy reminded, floating on ahead, "We need to get to Frighton as soon as we can."

Continuing along the trail of goop the four careful wanderers finally laid eyes on what they were looking for. A tall wrought iron gate loomed before them, twisting up into pointed spikes with other gothic adornments. The roots of the tree planted above it twisted around some of the bars, which were also covered in a healthy layer of the black slime. Spectre peered in beyond the bars of the gate, but saw nothing except extending darkness.

"It just looks like the path keeps going, I thought this was supposed to be a portal?" she questioned, looking to Boo who inspected the gate thoroughly.

"I think it's just a trick, boo," she replied, "I'm sure this is the portal."

"Well, how do we get it open?" Witch asked, noting the lack of hinges or even a break in the metal, making the whole thing seem more like an imposing fence than a gate. The black sludge wriggled effortlessly between the gaps in the bars, but they were too close together for even someone as small as Witch to squeeze through.

The bat turned her head, gesturing with a wing to the orange cure. "Pumpkin, will you do the honors?"

Pumpkin nodded affirmatively and the group quickly scurried up against the walls to make room as she aimed her wand.

"**Pretty Cure Jack-o-Jinx!"**

The fireball collided with the iron gate, but when the flash of light dimmed the group noticed no hole had been made. Pumpkin opened her mouth to fire another spell, but suddenly a loud groan echoed through the tunnel, and dirt began to fall from the ceiling as slowly the gate began to withdraw into the ground.

The girls regrouped, each holding out their wands in a feeble attempt to illuminate the thick darkness beyond. "Maybe launch another fireball so we can at least see how long the tunnel goes?" Witch suggested. Another pumpkin shaped flame shot from the cure's wand and traveled down the corridor, but it didn't get far before it was suddenly snuffed out by the dark.

"I think we just have to go, boo," the fairy said sternly, beginning to float beyond the gate, "Whatever you do, don't be scared. You can't let the fear get to you, boo."

"N-not even a little bit scared?" Spectre asked with a nervous smile. Boo shook her head.

"You can't be just brave, you have to be fearless. If you let even the slightest doubt into your heart, that is how they will get you, boo."

The cures all looked at each other nervously, Witch wringing her hands with uncertainty. "Alright, we can do this. We just need to stick together." Both Pumpkin and Spectre seemed entirely unconvinced that cleansing themselves of fear was even possible. Neither voiced any doubts aloud, though it was written across their worried faces plain as day.

Taking a collective breath, the girls stepped in unison over the threshold beyond the gate, and exhaling upon the realization that nothing terrible had occurred. Taking a few more steps down the pathway, Witch felt her boot sink into something thick and soft. With a grimace, she bent forward to hold her light to the ground and see what it was she had stepped in. It was not another half-melted dread, much to her relief, just a particularly large glob of the black sludge.

"This shit is so gross," she exhaled with a forced, nervous laugh as she straightened up and held her wand to the side to look at Pumpkin. Much to her surprise, the girl who had stood less than a foot from her mere seconds ago had simply vanished. "Pumpkin?" She swiveled to the other side, only to find the same had occurred with Spectre. "Spectre? Boo?" Her voice didn't echo anymore, as though the sound became wholly absorbed by the thick layers of goo that lined the cavern.

Witch could feel her heartbeat in her throat, and she swallowed to relieve the tension. All she had to do was keep moving forward. Perhaps they had simply not notice her stop, and continued on without her. It was entirely possible, considering that the darkness was heavy enough that she couldn't see five feet in front of her even with the light of her wand. Moving to take another step forward, the cure found her foot firmly rooted in the muck. Attempting to lift the other one had the same result.

Panic began to tickle her muscles as she tugged to free her feet, but the furious pulling only made her fall backward. Her hands were fast enough to catch her fall, but that meant now they too were stuck in the thick slime. "Pumpkin! Spectre! Boo!" she called out desperately, but even she could tell her voice hadn't traveled far.

A few more useless tugs confirmed she was good and stuck now, and Witch heaved a sigh as she attempted to calm herself with limited success. Looking over to her wand, which in her fall had been discarded, she noticed it had sunk far into the goop, farther than seemed possible. Leaning over to get a better look, she could see that it was sinking still. Looking down at herself, she realized she too sank with surprising speed. The slime had risen up to the middle of her calf, covered her hips where she had landed in her fall, and risen nearly to her elbows. This realization made the panic set in with new vigor, and it seemed the faster her heart beat, the faster she began to sink. Quickly her wand succumbed to the depths, and it wasn't long until Witch strained to keep her head above the dark sea.

"Pumpkin...Spectre...Boo..."

Witch let out one final cry of desperation as the slime continued to rise before she submerged completely.

* * *

Sofía opened her eyes suddenly, sitting upright in bed with a strangled gasp. Looking around her bedroom, everything appeared to be normal, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something was terribly amiss. The clock read 6:02 am; she should be getting ready for school. The feeling that something was off didn't waver as she swung her legs over the edge of her bed and crossed the room to her closet, pulling on her skirt and buttoning up her undershirt before she realized what it was.

"Boo?" she asked softly, looking from the ceiling fan where the fairy often hung, to the desk, to the bedpost. No sign of the little pink bat. Trotting down the steps for breakfast Sofía encountered her family waiting for her in the doorway to the kitchen. The three stood stiff in a straight line with solemn frowns on each face. "What's the matter?" Sofía questioned, slightly taken aback by the unusual sight.

"We know what you did," the three spoke in unison, nothing but their lips moving even the slightest inch.

Sofía took a tentative step back at the accusation, "What did I do?"

"You brainwashed us. You made us forget all the times you made mistakes. You hid the truth." Sofía'a mouth hung slightly ajar, and she gripped the banister.

"That's not how it happened!" she insisted desperately, glaring at her brother who must have told them about the newspaper scandal. "I was protecting you!"

"Then why couldn't you save us?" Suddenly the room around them began to melt, slipping slowly to the floor while her family remained unmoving in the dripping doorway. Sofía reached out to pull them into the open, but found her feet had begun to sink into the carpet which had also become some strange viscous liquid. "You couldn't save us...you're not strong enough," they repeated without the slightest flinch as globs of the melting house began to drip down their faces. "We're sorry we ever believed in you."

Sofía simply stared in horror, unable to find any words to defend herself from the onslaught of their verbal attack. Soon she sank up to her knees in the remnants of her house, struggling to reach out for her family. "No, please! I can fix this, I can do it!" Straining forward with all her might, she was mere centimeters from her mother's hand. Just a little further. As her fingertips brushed lightly against her mother's hand, she too began to melt along with the house, as though Sofía's touch had triggered some awful metamorphosis.

"Mom!"

With a shudder the rest of the house collapsed around her, thick splatters of heavy residue pattering against the ground until Sofía found herself buried. Beneath the surface, she realized that despite being submerged that breathing wasn't a problem, nor was opening her eyes to scan her surroundings, finding that not a trace of her family had survived the bizarre liquification.

Moving however, did prove difficult, like swimming through molasses as Sofía spied a light source just below her. Clawing her way through the dense waters for the light, eventually one hand desperately broke free of the surface. As soon as the surface tension broke, Sofía tumbled out of the sky, colliding with the ground on what appeared to be her school's campus.

Standing unsteadily to her feet, she rubbed her backside which had taken the brunt of the impact as she shuffled towards the main building. As soon as the doors opened, everyone inside froze immediately. Slowly, with a barely audible creaking of vertebrae every head turned and faced the girl in the entryway. Shuffling nervously through the hallway to her usual meeting spot, the heads turned to follow her trek down the hallway like the eyes of a haunted house painting.

Once she stepped out into the courtyard Sofía found herself free of the prying eyes of the hallway. The only ones who stood outside were her two comrades, both of whom stood precariously atop the half wall, looking at one another but not saying a word. The slamming of the door swinging shut behind her made both pairs of eyes turn immediately to face her, and Sofía took a sure footed step forward. Nothing to be afraid of, they were just her friends. No fear, right?

"Hey...have you guys noticed anything weird about today?" she asked, smiling uncertainly.

Both stared back in silence for an uncomfortable length of time before Peyton opened her mouth to speak in a voice that was distinctly not hers. "We needed you."

"There's just something weird going on today," Sofía insisted in exasperation, sensing the conversation would take a similar trajectory as the one with her family. "But I'm doing my best to fix it!"

The two girls shared a look, speaking glumly in unison, "Maybe that's not enough."

"I'll prove it to you! I can do it!" Sofía shouted, clenching her fists.

"You can't. You can't save us," Audrey insisted, locking eyes with Peyton as both girls began to tip from their standing point atop the wall.

"Be careful!" Sofía cried, holding her arms out in vain as both girls fell, becoming thick black slime as they collided with her arms and the ground beneath them. Sofía screamed, turning away quickly and hugging herself tightly. She had to fix this. Her fear began to send adrenaline jitters through her legs, and suddenly she found herself dashing off across the courtyard. Trying to convince herself as much as everyone else, she continued to mutter quietly under her breath as she reached the door, "I can do it. I can do it…"

As the door swung shut behind her the girl looked up to see the inside of her school looked markedly different upon reentrance. The tiles on the floor had warped, becoming crooked and misshapen. The occasional colored tiles that dotted the floor had fallen away, leaving gaping black holes in their place which Sofía skittered around the edges of to cross through the school.

The lockers that lined the hallway had grown tall and twisted, a few doors hanging ajar with little corners of paper poking out. Sofía reached up tentatively to tug at one of the edges, and immediately a pile of newspapers began to pour from the locker as the door swung open further. The locker was impossibly full as the multitude of copies that continued to flutter out piled up around Sofía, a few tumbling down into the holes left by the missing tiles in the floor. Finally the torrential downpour of paper ceased, and the girl wriggled her way out of the pile that enveloped her, tossing a few more down the bottomless holes for good measure. Whatever was going on here, she would get to the bottom of it. She would prove herself capable and get back in everyone's good graces again, she simply had to. "I can do it. I can…"

The empty hallway felt only marginally better than the previous one that had been lined with the prying eyes of her peers, but the emptiness weighed heavy on her mind as a sense of impending doom itched at the back of her skull. The strange distortion of the school stood perfectly silent, though her ears strained to hear the imaginary sounds that her mind conjured. Was that the echo of a footstep? Surely not, even her own shoes suspiciously made no sound on the hard tile. Breathing? She sucked in and held her own breath until she felt certain that had been a fabrication as well.

The further she walked, the taller the lockers that lined the walls became, and the darker the path ahead grew. The oppressive silence remained even as Sofía picked up her pace and broke into a sprint, her shoes not making a sound as they kicked off the tile. Either everything continued getting taller, or Sofía was shrinking the further she ran. After what felt like an hour, but could have easily only been a few minutes with no sunlight or movement to judge, she collapsed on the ground and let out a weak cry.

"Fine! You were right! Everyone was right, I can't do this by myself," she whimpered, hugging her knees to her chest and hiding her face behind them. "I'm not enough…"

From one of the holes in the floor arose a dark mass, churning until it formed the shape of a dread. This creature did not wear a terror mask on its tail, and approached the girl with curious caution. Startled by the feeling of something brushing against her leg Sofía's head jerked up to spot the monster, and she scuttled back quickly. The dread tensed too at the sudden movement, but as soon as the commotion died down it approached her again.

Sofía had never noticed how soft these featureless monsters were until it brushed up beside her again like a cat, its eyeless face focused on hers.

"What?" she demanded defensively, the thing shrinking back a bit at the sound of her voice. Feeling a bit guilty, she frowned, softening her tone. "Are you here because I'm scared?"

The dread nodded its head slowly and Sofía bit her lip to stifle any wibbling. "I know, I'm afraid. I don't know what's going on...I just wanted to help people. I wanted to save everyone all on my own and be a hero."

The pointed nose of the dread prodded gently at her cheek, catching a lone tear as it rolled down her face.

"But I can't do it all by myself. I think...at some point I knew that. But I was too scared to ask for help. I didn't want anyone to think I was incapable so I just...kept going. If Bing and Fay hadn't shown up I don't know what I'd have done. They helped without my asking so I never had to face that, and now I'm trapped in this weird place and I know I need help but it's too late now because there's not even anyone to ask for help but I need it…I need help or I'm never going to get out..."

Tears rolled steadily down her cheeks now, and the dread watched silently, its head bowed. Slowly it skittered over to one of the giant locker doors and looked expectantly over its shoulder at Sofía. Wiping her cheeks, she watched it uncertainly.

"What?"

The dread looked back at the locker door, then back to Sofía, letting out a strange, muffled chirping noise, beckoning her over with its tail. Shuffling on her hands and knees, careful to avoid the scattered pitfalls in the ground, she eyed the locker door. It was impossibly tall, stretching higher than her eyes could see in the dim lighting. She could barely even make out the handle which seemed to be a good 40 feet above.

"Is this the door out?" she asked incredulously, peeking down at the black monster that nodded its head again. "Shit...it's so high up…" Even without eyes, the dread looked at her expectantly.

Curling her fingertips around what of the edge she could grip, Sofía gave a few futile tugs. The door didn't so much as budge. It was clear now that the only way this thing was coming open was if she got up to the handle to open it properly. She strained her eyes to look up at the handle again, her gaze then dropped to the small creature beside her.

"Do you think you could help me get this door open?" she asked bashfully, crossing her arms uncomfortably and looking off to the side. With a sticky smack the dread's arms grew longer, with large claw tipped hands that closed easily around Sofía's torso. She jumped, all her other encounters with the dread telling her this was bad news, but it didn't squeeze. Rather, it held her very gently as with another splatter of black goop produced two batlike wings from the monster's back.

Gingerly it lifted her up off the ground as it took to the air, flying vertically up the side of the massive door. Sofía's feet dangled precariously beneath her, her arms resting on the hands of the beast that gripped her until they reached the giant handle. Being acutely aware of the height, she grew hesitant to lift her arms and reach out, but the dread gave her a brief, comforting squeeze as though it sensed her reservations.

Sofía stretched her arms out, fingers closing around the cold metal handle and giving it a swift tug. Immediately the door began to creak open, revealing a faint light on the other side, as well as a swell of fog that rolled into the twisted hallway. The dread set her back down on the ground, and with a slurping sound retracted the massive hands and wings, returning to its usual shape.

"Thank you," Sofía said gently, smiling a bit as she approached the doorway. "Are you going to come too?" the dread shook its head, trotting over to the hole in the ground that it had crawled out from. "Okay, well you be good. And thanks again."

The dread slithered away down into the darkness, and Sofía turned to face the door ahead of her with a warmth spreading through her chest. As the fog swirled around her she noticed her school uniform drifting away on the clouds, replaced with her cure uniform the further she walked. With sudden clarity she remembered what it was she had set out to do, and where she had been. This foggy expanse that loomed ahead, just barely visible…

Frighton.


	22. Chapter 22- Faces

_Author's Note: Hello again! As with last time, this chapter has content that may be triggering for some. Warnings for intense unreality, body horror, and general creepiness. If these subjects are upsetting for you, I do not recommend continuing this chapter. Instead, feel free to contact me for a trigger-free summary of events so you can finish the story without missing anything! _

_For those confident in continuing, I hope you enjoy!_

* * *

Passing through the wrought iron gate, Pumpkin gripped her wand tightly. The only protection against the immense darkness, the small flame that flickered at the tip of her wand, cast strange, distorted shadows of the trio as they walked along wordlessly. Pumpkin's eyes lingered on her own shadow, dancing along the wall just beside her, a peculiar malformation of her own image. For a brief instant, it seemed her shadow had a face. Something like eyes caught her attention, and the shadowy face twisted into a malicious grin. Pumpkin blinked forcefully, refocusing her eyes on the shadow only to reveal its benign nature, though she kept glancing back towards it uncertainly.

A loud squelch brought her attention back to reality as she looked to her left to see what had caused the sound, but found no one there. Her thick brows knit together tightly, and she waved her wand behind her to illuminate the back of the corridor, and still nothing. She was certain that Witch had stood beside her just moments ago, and Spectre only a short distance from Witch. Now both had utterly vanished. Even with the light of her wand, the darkness loomed thick all around so that seeing more than a few feet became nigh impossible. Closing both hands securely around her wand, Pumpkin swung it forward with a flourish.

"**Pretty Cure Jack-o-Jinx!"**

The fireball the spell produced hurtled down the corridor, casting faint light as it traveled until darkness swallowed it whole. No sign of her partners. Pumpkin continued cautiously forward, keeping her wand raised and at the ready in case of any other abnormalities. Just ahead, she thought she could make out a small pinprick of light. As she neared it became clearer, a hole just ahead with smoke wafting from the singed edges. Had her spell punched an opening in the cave itself?

Trotting towards it eagerly the light grew larger, but as she neared she felt a strong suction begin to pull her ahead faster than her legs could carry her, causing a hesitant stumble. Tensing her shoulders, Pumpkin dug the heels of her boots into the floor in a vain attempt to resist the sudden pull, but the slick and slimy floors provided little traction as the invisible force pulled her ever forward. The light that filtered in through the opening blinded her, forcing her to squint as she came right up on the bizarre anomaly. The strong vacuum managed to pry her bonewick wand from her tightly clenched fingers, taking with it any sense of security she had before she too tumbled through the hole and into the light.

* * *

As soon as the light died down, Bing found herself under the flourescent lights of the gym. Squinting her eyes she spied the crowded stands, filled with more people than she had ever seen at a game before. From wall to wall, floor to ceiling the bleachers were filled with people like the whole town had shown up, conversing with one another in a steady, pre-game hum. Perhaps the unusual brightness of the lights was playing tricks on her, but it seemed as though no one on the bleachers bore any facial features.

Turning her gaze back to the court, Bing spied Saanvi standing at the net just ahead of her. If anyone knew why this game was so popular, it would be Saanvi. She seemed to know everything, after all. Trotting up behind her, Bing placed a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Hey, do you know what's going on?"

Saanvi turned to look over her shoulder slowly, and Bing quickly shrunk away as she saw with certainty that Saanvi's face was entirely featureless. From the pout of her lips to the curve of her cheek bones, everything had been entirely flattened to a smooth, even plane of blank skin, and yet her voice carried to Bing's ears unimpeded by the lack of a mouth.

"A volleyball game?" she replied incredulously, "What's the matter with you? You look upset."

Bing closed her eyes to shut herself off from the scenario. What on earth? This had to be some kind of elaborate prank. Taking a few deep breaths and removing any traces of worry from her face, she locked eyes on her faceless friend again, though the sight made her skin erupt into tiny goosebumps. "It's nothing. I'm good to go."

As the other team filed out, it became clear that Bing was the unusual one in the situation with everyone from the referees to the entire team baring a smooth, unpopulated face. Suddenly a sensation of dread overcame the girl, and with trembling fingers she reached up to her own face, feeling timidly along her skin with her fingertips. She could feel the contours of her lips, and the protrusion of her chin, and crossing her eyes confirmed her nose was there as well. At least she could breath a sigh of relief at this discovery, and she took her place for the start of the game.

From the first blow of the whistle, everything progressed as normal. At least, as normally as it could with a room full of faceless people. Bing felt an anxious tightness clench her chest in an icy grip each time her eyes wandered towards one of the blank faces, so she made a concerted effort to look nowhere but at the ball, the floor, or the wall just beyond the strange people.

A deep serve went beyond the reach of the team and bounced off the wooden floor, earning a point for the opposing team. Bing frowned, knitting her brows together in frustration. She should've noticed, that one was on her. Suddenly the ref blew his whistle without the aid of lips, and pointed directly at her, the sharp noise startling her from her thoughts.

"Enough with the obscenities, or you're out for the rest of the game."

Bing blinked, entirely taken aback by the remark. "...huh?"

"I said stop!" the referee repeated, and Saanvi ran over to Bing's side, slapping a hand over her face.

"We're sorry! She's a little out of sorts today," Saanvi called back to the disgruntled referee before turning her blank face to Bing, mere centimeters away. "Cut it out, I don't want us to get penalized because you can't keep it together," she demanded in a whisper.

"What are you talking about?!" Bing pleaded in a harsh whisper of her own.

"You need to pull yourself together and stop making such obscene faces! You're embarrassing yourself and the team."

Bing looked around in bewilderment, mouth agape and eyes wide, as though there might be someone in the stands with a sympathetic eye to plead with, but all that lay before her were blank, emotionless faces.

"I'm the only one with a normal face around here! I have no idea what the fuck is going on but I'm seriously creeped out."

Saanvi gasped and took a few steps back while their faceless coach approached with a quick stride. "Bing you need to calm down right now, I'm pulling you out for the rest of the game." He reached towards her, fingers outspread to obscure her face from the crowd as he pushed her with his other hand toward the sidelines.

Irritably, Bing grabbed his wrist and pulled his hand away from her face, taking a few steps back. "Stop it! Don't fucking touch me you creepy bastard!" Immediately the entire gymnasium filled with murmurs of dissent, each expressionless face obviously fixated on her. The sight made her skin crawl, and before she knew it she had run out the door and down the hallway. The murmurs of the gym faded until the only sound was that of her footsteps on the polished tile. As she approached her secret hiding spot, Bing peered over her shoulder to ensure none of the faceless doppelgangers had followed her as she swung open the door and closed it just as quickly.

What lay on the other side, however, was not her library storage room hideaway. Instead, she found herself standing in the foyer of her living room, the lights in her house all turned out except for one sliver of light that traced across the floor and up the wall to her right. Her first instinct when she entered had been to call out to her parents and see if anyone was home, but the heavy silence weighed on her throat such that no words were able to push their way out.

Tentatively she tip toed across the floor until the beam of light crossed her path. Turning her head around the corner, she spied the source of the light. The door to the laundry room stood just barely ajar, allowing the sliver of light to escape. If someone was home, why had no one bothered to turn any lights on?

"Bing. You're home early."

The deep voice of her father nearly made her jump out of her skin as she whipped around, the tall figure standing right behind her in the darkness. Despite the obscurity of the dim light, it was clear he was just as expressionless as the others.

"Why aren't you at the game?"

"I-it ended early tonight," she replied quickly, gripping the corner of the wall she leaned against, eyes downcast.

"You're lying. It's written all over your face."

The accusation made her eyes widen, though she didn't dare look up as she felt the heat of tears welling up in her eyes. She pressed her lips in a thin line, noticing the beam of light on the floor had been interrupted by a shadow. With a slow creak the door to the laundry room opened, her mother standing in the doorway, judging by the shadow on the wall.

"Honey, please. Get ahold of yourself," she reprimanded, stepping out from the doorway to stand behind her daughter, grabbing Bing's shoulders and turning her around. Tense, Bing looked up timidly to the blank face of her mother who held her shoulders so tightly she could feel her mother's nails poking through her jersey. "Oh dear. What has become of you?"

Clicking her tongue in disapproval, she looked up at her husband for a moment, as though invisibly mouthing something to him before bringing her faceless attention back to her daughter. "This look simply doesn't suit you my dear. To be frank, it's embarrassing. Let me help you."

Bing didn't know what to expect as her mother guided her by the shoulder to the laundry room while her father stepped in behind them. "It will only take a second, and afterwards you will look much better." Her mother leaned in close and touched her smooth face to Bing's cheek in a gesture she assumed was supposed to be a kiss before turning her back. "Dearest, would you mind holding her?"

Time seemed to slow in that instant as everything suddenly became clear. Her father took a step towards her, hands outstretched while her mother turned around to face her, the clothes iron in her delicately manicured hands emitting a gentle hiss of steam.

The adrenaline that surged through Bing in that instant made her hands shake, but with newfound energy she barrelled shoulder first into her father, knocking him to the ground as she stumbled back out into the hallway. Grabbing the banister she swung around to the staircase, nearly tumbling down the steps as she flew down to her basement bedroom. The sound of footsteps thundered above her and Bing darted into her bathroom, shutting and locking the door behind her.

It wasn't long before the pounding began, shaking the door violently as Bing searched frantically through the cupboards for anything she could use to defend herself. Crawling into the bathtub she began to pick at the protective plastic coating on her razor, each pound on the door tightening anxiety's grip on her heart. Without warning the tap on her tub sprung on, spewing black sludge into the tub where she sat. Quickly it filled passed her legs, and Bing noticed it was opaque enough to hide her. If nothing else, she could catch her parents off guard and make a break for the outdoors. Gulping in as much air as she could, Bing ducked beneath the surface of the sludge with the razor clutched tightly in her hands just as the door gave way. Even under the surface her hands trembled, and after a few seconds of waiting she burst out with her pathetic weapon brandished before her.

There was no one there. In fact, she wasn't even in her bathroom anymore, but instead a dark, empty room, the floors covered in the same black substance that had filled her bath. The only source of light in the place was a solitary ray of light that filtered down through a hole high above.

Collapsing to the ground Bing let out a frustrated cry as she threw her makeshift weapon to the side, burying her face in her hands. Whatever she had done to deserve this nightmare, she was sorry. Tears threatened to fall from her eyes once more, but a stirring in the liquid that covered the floor brought her attention to the source of the ripples.

A few feet away a black mass began to emerge from the goo, or rather, the goo began collecting into a solid shape, revealing itself to be a dread. Bing froze at the sight, holding her hands in front of her defensively as the eyeless creature turned towards her. Raising its pointed nose as if to sniff the air, it approached curiously, wading slowly through the muck until it sat right beside her. It lifted its nose again, touching her cheek gently and fixating on her with what seemed like expectation. Bing simply stared back, though realizing she had been holding her breath she let out a sigh that quivered on the air.

The sound of her own shaking breath brought a flush of embarrassment to her cheeks, and she hid behind her hands. As soon as she was shielded she felt hot tears beginning to trickle down her face, her shoulders shaking as she hunched over, sobbing. Between cries Bing gasped as she felt the dread gingerly stepped into her lap, beginning to rumble like some strange, noiseless purr.

Was it...comforting her?

Regardless of the creature's intentions, Bing pulled her hands away from her eyes to stare dumbfounded at the thing. As emotion swelled within her she scooped up the foxlike creature in her arms, holding it in a tight embrace as she cried freely. Her eyes were shut tight, though the tears rolled unimpeded down her face and onto the murky ground below while the dread continued its silent rumblings against her chest.

The feeling of the nose against her cheek once again made Bing open her eyes, looking at the dread in her arms. It gestured with its head down to the ground, which had become much less opaque than it had been.

Another tear rolled off her face and onto the ground, making impact with the liquid and immediately increasing the clarity of all the substance around her. It seemed the more teardrops hit the ground, the brighter the light above became as well. In the newfound light, Bing could just make out a doorway lying beneath the liquid that coated the floor. When she had been crying into her hands, there was no change, but as soon as the dread lay in her arms…

Bing looked down at the creature again with a small smile, "...did you know?" The dread rubbed against her affectionately, continuing its silent purr. She ran her hands across its face, stopping to scratch behind its ears, feeling a little silly as she recalled Boo saying these were creatures made of pure fear. Then again, she had been through enough fear in that evening that there seemed to be nothing odd about petting some Frighton beast. Suddenly she stopped, looking back at the door in the floor. Frighton! That was what she had been doing before all the strange things began happening…

"Is...is that door going to take me to Frighton?" she asked, looking down at the dread in her lap. Did they even understand English, or was she just talking to herself? To her relief, the dread nodded, climbing down off her lap and standing over by the door. Scooting on over to the door herself, Bing gripped the handle and pulled upwards, the door swinging open with a loud creak.

Mist billowed into the room through the door while the liquid that covered the floor began to pour through the hole, both obscuring her vision of what lay on the other side. Bing knit her brows uncertainly, looking over at the dread who stood just beside her, looking up at her face. Surely whatever lay beyond couldn't be worse than what she had already experienced, right? Hell, she had just sat and openly sobbed in front of someone, even if that someone wasn't human, it was something she never thought herself capable of. Even if what lay beyond was worse, she could handle it.

Bing gave the dread one final scratch between the ears with a small smile as she swung her legs over the edge of the doorway. "Thank you…" she murmured gratefully, placing a quick kiss atop the beast's head before kicking off into the hole.

As she fell through the mist, her volleyball uniform blew away on the whisps of the clouds, replaced by her Pretty Cure uniform. This must be it, then. The world of fear.


	23. Chapter 23- Voice

Author's Note: Hey all! Last time, I swear. Trigger warnings for unreality again in this chapter. As always you are welcome to message me for a trigger free summary so you can finish the series! We're getting close to the end, thanks for hanging in there with me!

* * *

The quiet plinks of droplets falling to the ground draw the attention of Cure Spectre as the group wandered through the dark cavern. The further she progressed the louder the sound became, though pinpointing its location proved difficult with only the faint, flickering light of her bonewick wand to light her way. Just as well, she mused, as surely this trail was dangerous enough without wandering off to investigate strange noises. As long as she stayed on the path, everything would be fine.

Holding her wand aloft shone just enough light to see a couple feet ahead of her, the only other living thing she could make out in the dim was the pink bat fairy who flew on just ahead of her without a word.

"How much further past the gate until we get to Frighton?" Spectre asked, her voice splitting the damp quiet. The fairy's large, pink ears swiveled backward indicating she had heard the question, but she didn't answer. Spectre sighed quietly, noticing a slight tremor on her breath. Perhaps she was more nervous than she initially thought. Despite the gentle breath of the sigh, the air she expelled shook the little flame on the end of her wand violently. Quickly Spectre stuck out a gloved hand to cup around the flame and shield it from any more disturbances, what with it being her only light source, but this movement in itself became her undoing as her hand darted out and promptly snuffed out the little flame.

The sudden darkness made her skin crawl, and quickly she noticed that the flames of her two companions seemed to have also gone out.

"Witch? Pumpkin?"

A pause.

No response.

With three long striding steps Spectre closed the distance between her and the bat fairy, sticking her hand out blindly until her hand struck the soft body of Boo.

"Hey! Watch it, boo."

Spectre rested her hand on the back of the fairy. "I want to make sure I don't lose you, the others are gone," she relayed nervously.

"Did they fall behind, boo?"

"It's hard to tell," Spectre murmured, looking back over her shoulder and straining her eyes to make out any shapes in the darkness. It was as though it had swallowed them whole, without a trace left of either girl. While the remaining two continued on, the drips went from occasional plinks, to a steady leak, to a dull roar. Though she couldn't see far enough ahead to make anything out, the fine misty spray that flecked her face indicated some kind of waterfall.

"Is this it?"

"The door is behind the falls, boo."

Keeping her hand on the fairy, Spectre followed Boo's lead uncertainly as the ground became less stable under her feet, a few steps kicking off clumps of dirt. Was this the edge of the pool? Judging just by the sound and the direction of the spray, they had rounded the waterfall, and now skirted just along the cliff that it poured from. The terrain here was rocky, and in her heels Spectre struggled to keep her balance with one hand on Boo and the other feeling along the wall.

"Here it is, boo."

The fairy floated away from Spectre's hand, and the sudden shift made her wobble on the wet rocks, her now empty hand dancing in the air as her fingers struggled to find something to grasp onto. They searched in vain, and her impractical footware quickly lost its placement atop the rocks.

"Boo!" Spectre screamed with hands outstretched, but if the fairy had heard her she showed no signs of it. The waterfall soaked her as she passed underneath it, though whatever it was made of it certainly wasn't water. It was too viscous, and slightly warm. Initially she expected to splash into a pool of the stuff, but no pool rose to meet her. Instead, she continued falling down a pit just as vast and dark as the rest of the cavern. She fell fast, hair whipping in the air as she felt herself becoming light headed. Even though she couldn't tell in the darkness, she knew her vision would soon fade, and in an instant she lost consciousness.

* * *

"Woah, Fay! Are you alright?"

Fay's eyes shot open and she sat up with a gasp, as though waking from a nightmare. She sat on the turf of the football field, Nia crouched beside her with a look of concern on her face. What happened?

"You passed out and fell off your podium," Nia explained gently, "Have you eaten? Were you locking your knees?" Fay brought an uncertain hand to her forehead, looking around at the other members of the band, a few of whom looked at her with concern while others chatted quietly amongst themselves or took a water break.

"I-I really don't know," Fay admitted, standing uneasily to her feet. Her head throbbed, and something about the scene just seemed off. How had she even gotten here? What day was it? Nia gave her a strange look, holding out her hands like she expected her to fall again.

"Do you think you can keep going?"

Resting a hand on her chest to check her heartbeat, Fay's eyes drifted downward. Honestly, staying here was the last thing she wanted to do. What she really wanted was to go home and lay down until she could shake this feeling that something was wrong. But, she supposed the band needed her. Opening her mouth to announce she'd stay, Nia gave her the same strange look as before, this time looking a little offended.

"You don't have to say if you don't want to, I was just asking."

Fay furrowed her brows in confusion as Nia stormed off, touching her fingertips to her lips. Had she said all that aloud? Several other students turned, giving her peculiar looks as she hurried over to her bag to collect her things. As long as she had made a fool of herself, and seemingly upset everyone else, she might as well head home, right?

"Oh please, don't act all surprised." A trumpet player beside her scoffed as he took a long drink from his water bottle. "Of course we'd be offended, you said this was the last thing you wanted to be doing. You know there's lots of other people who would be happy to be the drum major." There were soft murmurs of dissent from the others nearby, and Fay froze, dumbfounded.

"I-I didn't say that this was the last thing I wanted to do! I mean, I didn't mean to say it, what I meant to say was I'd be happy to sta-"

"What do you mean, you didn't mean to say it? Were you thinking it?"

Fay shrunk back a bit, gripping her duffel bag. "Yes, but-"

"But you were going to say something else?"

"Yes!"

The boy snapped his water bottle closed, looking at the others who had begun listening in to their back and forth. "I knew the Pretty Cure were liars."

Fay breathed in sharply, and with her head hung low trudged past the group. Despite the ache in her heart, she couldn't bring herself to defend against the accusation. It was just a slip up, she assured herself as she hopped on her bike and headed home. Surely everyone would forget about it soon enough.

All eyes seemed to be on her as she pedaled through town, but Fay paid them no mind. As soon as she was home, everything would be fine. Skidding to a stop on her driveway, Fay threw the bike down in the grass and ran to the front door. Once inside she slumped back against the door with a heavy sigh, burying her face in her hands to compose herself before walking in.

"I'm home!" she called out, crossing through the quiet house with cautious steps. In the living room she found her family sitting on the couch with another man sitting in a chair opposite them. Their faces were all downcast and solemn, and Fay noticed the policeman's uniform on the unidentified man sitting across from them. What was he doing here?

The man looked up suddenly, eyes fixed on the girl who lingered timidly in the doorway. "My name is Officer Timore, you are Fay Weaver, correct?" She nodded slowly. Why was he here? Was he looking for her?

"As a matter of fact, yes I am."

Fay paled. It had happened again. A response to a silent question, all her thoughts leaking out into the open air for all to hear. She clutched her duffle bag in front of her chest, looking nervously from the police officer to her parents, to Tyler. None of her family dared make eye contact with her, only the officer who didn't dare look away as if afraid she might strike him were he not to remain vigilant.

"I have a few questions to ask you, so I need you to come with me down to the station." He stood, placing a hand on the small of her back to guide her out the front door. His touch was cold, and the sickening feeling that something wasn't right twisted in her gut yet again. What was this about? Was it about Evelyn?

"So you know about the disappearance of Miss Davies?" The question made her head spin, and Fay stumbled over to to the wall to brace herself in case she fainted once again. "I am afraid that is exactly what this is about. We received word that you were the last one seen with her before her disappearance, and were spotted acting erratically shortly after. We would like to talk to you about what happened."

That was right...Evelyn had been kidnapped. She had run to find Sofía and Bing...but then...then… Why couldn't she recall what had happened after that? The officer had stopped, placing a firm, cold hand on her shoulder.

"Miss Weaver, if you know what happened to Evelyn Davies I need you to tell me. Were you present when the crime occurred?"

The image of the event played through her mind almost without thinking. Baphomet's sudden appearance, the girl being ripped away from her grasp, the empty home… "I was there, but it wasn't me! I was taking her home...I tried to save her and I don't know what happened next! She was taken by someone from Frighton!"

Suddenly cold steel encircled her wrists, though the officer had moved inhumanly fast in order to place them. "Ma'am I'm afraid you don't understand the seriousness of this situation. You are under arrest for the kidnapping of Evelyn Davies."

Fay jolted, struggling against the man's grip. "What?! Y-you can't!" He either didn't listen, or didn't care as he led her to the front door. Whipping her head around Fay strained to get a look at her family, but no one lifted her head to see her go.

"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law."

As the front door opened, on the other side lay a well populated courtroom. As all the faces turned to look at Fay, she came to realize that they were all people she knew. Peers from school, friends from old schools, people around town...the only ones conspicuously absent were her family, and her girlfriends. Guided to the front of the courtroom by the officer, Fay plopped down on the witness stand before a hushed crowd.

Turning to the judge, she began to plead desperately, "Please, you have to help me. Something has happened to me and now people are reading my mind!"

"Sit down, now!" The judge ordered, banging his gavel and turning to face the panicked girl, revealing a white terror mask sealed to his face. The girl jumped, sitting down abruptly and turning back to face the rest of the courtroom only to find that now everyone in attendance wore the same plain, white masks. They all needed her help. Fay reached into her pocket to produce her smoke bon-bomb but found her pockets empty and her arms quickly restrained by court officers.

"No! We do not need your help," someone from the gallery shouted, standing up and pointing an accusatory finger at the defendant. "The only help we need is help getting the Pretty Cure out of our lives!" Commotion erupted amongst the attendees and the judge banged his gavel again to silence the dissenting crowd.

"Your honor, I don't believe we can reasonably trust this girl to tell anything but bold faced lies. After all, her entire life has been built upon deceit. All this Pretty Cure nonsense is surely a ruse. We can't even get an accurate name from her."

This made Fay pale, and she began shaking her head vehemently. Don't say it.

Don't say it.

"Isn't your real name !͆ͤ͏̪ ̬̝̝̤̥̮ͥ̏̐̎ͯ#̣̰̤͈͕̯̫̇̋͌ͤ$̩͙̰̈ͬ%̨̪̙̫͈̱̇͆͋̓^̻̄&amp;̫͉̝̓ͯ͠*̻̏? Isn't that who you really are?" The word was ugly, and came to her ears like some inhuman growl.

She continued shaking her head violently, screwing her eyes shut to block out the absurd scene. No, no, no. Now she could hear it too, the sound of her thoughts echoing through the wood paneled room as they seeped uncontrollably from her head.

'Let me out of here!' she thought desperately, the words reverberating through the hushed room. Without warning she bolted upright, swinging an elbow at the man who attempted to restrain her as she leapt from her seat and dashed across the room. Still handcuffed, Fay struggled to throw off the people whose now shadowy hands reached for her. No longer did they resemble people she knew, but instead took the form of clothed anxoids that made the same inhuman screech they always had.

Prying herself from their clawing hands, Fay managed to grasp the doorknob and throwing the door open. Dashing out of the courtroom, she found herself in the woods. The absence of any moonlight left a hush of darkness over the trees, not a single chirp of a bug or rustle of leaves to be heard in the still blackness. The door behind her burst open suddenly, and the anxoids of the townsfolk began to pour out after her.

Fay took off in a sprint. Her long legs carried her swiftly, and she quickly darted far ahead of the monsters. However, no matter how fast she ran, the scenery never seemed to change. Though the anxoids had since disappeared in the distance behind her, it looked like the exact same trees lie before her, as if she hadn't moved at all. Like some kind of nightmare.

Spying a shadow up ahead, Fay squinted her eyes and slowed to a walk. It was small, much too small to be an anxoid, and standing still in the center of the path a ways ahead. Could it be…

"Evelyn?!" She called out, but the little shadow in the distance made no reply, nor did it move from its spot. Then she heard it, a quiet command carried past her ear on the breeze that chilled her bones but moved not a single leaf.

"Run."

Picking up speed once again, the girl looked over her shoulder every so often to see if the anxoids had begun catching up to her, which they hadn't. Yet the same phenomena continued to occur. Surely she had been running for a good five minutes by now, and she appeared no closer to the little shadow on the long forest path, like it stretched out ahead of her to keep her in place as she sprinted. Every time she slowed to catch her breath, fire in her lungs and a stitch in her side, the same command drifted by in a whisper.

"Run."

And so she took off, again and again. Each burst of speed grew shorter and shorter as her legs grew rubbery underneath her, and the burning in her chest flared up with increasing ferocity. Though she pushed onward, her legs soon gave out underneath her and Fay tumbled to the ground.

Looking up, the shadow was still as far away as it had been from the start, just far off enough to be impossible to make out.

"Run."

Fay gritted her teeth, but made no move to get up off the ground, dragging in raspy, ragged breaths.

"Run."

"RUN."

"No!" She shouted with all the volume she could muster on such weak breaths. "I'm tired! I'm tired and I want to stop. I need to stop." Rolling over weakly onto her back and lifting her still-cuffed hands above her head to allow for deeper breaths, she didn't see the shadow begin to approach her.

Unexpectedly, the pointed nose of a dread peered over her, sniffing curiously. With a jolt Fay recoiled, rolling onto her hands and knees at the sight of the monster, though it made no move to attack. In fact, it had no terror mask to attack with. It approached again, nosing her insistently as though it wanted her to get up.

"What? What is it, what do you want?"

The dread turned its head up the path, Fay following its gaze up to a doorway that hadn't been there before, just a ways beyond where she now sat.

"J-just give me a minute, please," she breathed, her heartbeat slowly returning to its usual pace while the dread nodded, waiting patiently at her side. Once she had regained the energy to stand she rose to her feet, noticing that there was now a moon in the sky casting some light on the forest, and she could hear the movement of the trees and the creatures just beyond her vision. The never ending pathway too seemed to have fixed itself as she approached the door without issue, placing a hand on the wrought iron handle. This must be…

Suddenly the events that had transpired after Evelyn's kidnapping flashed before her mind's eye. She was headed to Frighton. Tugging the door open with a loud creak, the fog that lay beyond swept out across the underbrush, the dread beginning to bat playfully at the tendrils that swirled around its paws.

Immediately, the handcuffs around her wrist fell to the ground with a clatter. Thin whisps of the fog licked at Fay's ankles, transforming her shoes into her Pretty Cure heels, working its way up her body and taking the shape of her uniform. Stepping beyond the doorway, visibility was low. Straining her eyes to see through the dense mist, Cure Spectre saw a tall, humanoid figure dart past. Legs renewed of their energy, she gave chase into the barren land of Frighton.


	24. Chapter 24- Fear

A low, unidentifiable hum pulsed through the air of the foggy landscape from all sides, though no identifiable source presented itself. Besides the hum the air stood still and stale, but the grey tendrils of fog swirled and reformed like it had a life of its own. And perhaps it did. The dark shadow that darted across Spectre's vision barely stirred the dense, low hanging clouds as it moved as though simply a fleeting spirit.

In a practiced motion, Spectre plucked her bonewick wand from her throat as she followed the shadow in hot pursuit. As she neared, the shadow took a form vaguely identifiable through the fog. She could make out long black hair that curved with an exaggerated edge like the blade of an axe. A lightweight black skirt fluttered around pale legs as the figure ran, and Spectre held out her wand to see it more clearly. The figure sensed her presence, turning and looking over its shoulder at the pursuing Cure. The glance was quick, but Spectre noticed her thick black bangs that covered the figure's eyes, and the long gaunt face that lay below.

"I'm not going to hurt you! I just want to talk to you," Spectre called out, the request making the figure slow its pace. Slowly it came to a stop and turned to face the blue Cure with a blank expression, looking intently though its eyes were obscured under dark hair.

"Have you seen a little girl around here? A friend of mine was taken."

"I am a little girl," the figure replied in a high pitched voice, smiling sweetly. It wasn't little, that much was certain. It stood at around Fay's height, which wouldn't be considered small by any stretch of the word. The wide smile on such a narrow face was unnerving, and Spectre tightened her grip on her wand.

"The girl I am looking for is someone young, from earth. I'm here to take her home."

"Earth?" The wide smile grew somehow wider, "I know where the earthlings are."

Spectre smiled uncertainly, "Can you take me there?"

The mysterious figure nodded. "Of course."

"Thanks so much. Are you...from here?"

The figure nodded again. "Yes."

"What's your name?"

"Reaper."

* * *

Pumpkin collided with heavy feet on the grey, dusty earth. As soon as the dust settled, the cure's orange eyes surveyed the landscape critically. The thick fog that hung over the world of fear made it difficult to see far ahead, but it didn't seem like there was much to see anyway. Walking forward cautiously with fists clenched, Pumpkin listened with intent for any rustlings nearby.

As she walked, a large structure came into view. It looked like the skeletal remains of a castle, with half formed towers and scraggy unrefined edges. That would make sense, Pumpkin reasoned, given that Boo had told them of Frighton's decimation when she had been a Pretty Cure. But this castle didn't look like it had been recently demolished. Though pieces of rocky rubble lay scattered here and there along the grey dusty ground, none seemed to litter the base of the castle. There were no gaping holes in the sides of the castle that might suggest an attack, though pieces were missing it simply looked...unfinished. Had Lady Baphomet been rebuilding this?

Walking on forward, the grounds of the reconstructed castle came into view. The flowers that sprouted from the parched earth looked like mouths, all agape in silent screams of horror. Pumpkin lifted her eyes away from the sight and continued onward, until she spotted a silhouette amongst the flowers. It looked vaguely humanoid, but didn't resemble the anxoids she had grown so used to. Unlike the anxoids, this figure had distinct legs, and what looked like a hat that shielded its face from view.

"Hello?"

The still figure moved slowly, raising one arm and waving in languid greeting. Taking a few steps closer, Pumpkin thought she could catch the glimmer of one eye beneath the wide brim of the straw hat atop its head, but it was hard to say with such low visibility.

A few steps closer and Pumpkin froze. The figure stood on a stand amongst the flowers perfectly still, and indeed only had one eye visible. It was merely a glint from the shadows of the burlap sack that covered the rest of its face, secured with a knot around its neck. A row of stitches formed a smile across its cloth face, and heavy work gloves covered the hand that reached toward the Cure in greeting.

"Hello."

Though its mouth hid behind the burlap, its voice was unimpeded. Pumpkin clenched her fists tighter, growing unsettled as the thing took a few steps towards her. It lurched with each step it took, as though it had no bones or supportive muscles to hold it upright while moving.

"Have you seen any other girls who look like me around here? We came together, but got split up," she explained, eying the figure warily as it swayed slightly before her.

"Look...like...you?" The eye visible through the hole in the sack shone brighter. Excitement? "No. But...I know...where they would be."

"Where?"

With a dramatic lurch the scarecrow creature turned and pointed a gloved hand towards the castle. Stepping forward, Pumpkin gave the thing a wide berth as she approached the castle.

"Thank you."

"Wait."

Pumpkin looked back over her shoulder quizzically, not wanting to spend more time with the bizarre thing than she had to.

"They won't...let you in...without an escort. I...will take you."

"Oh, thanks," the cure replied with a weak smile as the creature lurched towards her.

"What is...your name?"

"Pumpkin. You?"

"Scarecrow."

* * *

The heavy door swung shut behind Cure Witch with a loud clang, and she found herself in what appeared to be a courtyard. Stone walls encircled her on all sides, and before her loomed a huge behemoth of a castle. The dark stone and twisted metal decals along the finished portions certainly matched with the giant wrought iron gate they had crossed to get here. At least Baphomet had a consistent aesthetic, that being 'creepy as fuck'.

Cure Witch wasted no time in whipping out her bonewick wand as she approached the castle doors, listening intently. Overhead, a giant red sun loomed in the sky, pulsating slightly like a beating heart and bathing the grey landscape in a faint red glow. Reaching the giant front doors to the castle interior, Witch huffed as the metal rings to open the door were once again placed much too high for her to reach. At least this time around, she had Pretty Cure powers, which of course included the ability to jump like nobody's business. Brushing her long purple pigtails back over her shoulders, and pulling her witch's hat firmly down on her head, the cure crouched momentarily before leaping into the air and grabbing ahold of the large door handle.

No sooner had the intrepid explorer secured her grip on the handle than the door began to slowly creak open without her giving even the slightest of tugs. Gripping the door fearfully, Witch peered down to see a dread followed by a small group of anxoids come scuttling out from inside the castle, paying no mind to the girl clinging to the door above their heads.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Witch jumped down inside the castle walls as the door began to slowly swing itself shut once again. The door closed with a heavy thud, shrouding the Pretty Cure in darkness. It was only by the light of her wand that she could see anything in the dark foyer, but she pressed on regardless. With all the different possible directions, Witch decided to simply head straight up the grand staircase. It seemed lighter upstairs, anyway.

Where was Boo? Surely she knew her way around Frighton better than anyone else. Was there a central place somewhere that they might find Lady Baphomet? The inside of the castle was barren, with only the polished stone floors and walls to look at, or the occasional dark wooden door. As such, when Witch began to hear footsteps whose pace did not match her own, she panicked. Quickly she snuffled out the flame on her wand and pressed herself against a wall, feeling around for a door handle and slipping inside the nearest room.

On this floor the ceiling was unfinished, so some of the pulsating red light shone down on the corridor, enough for Witch to spy something walking past with a slow, heavy gait. It had long, upright ears and blank white eyes, while the rest of its face and the entirety of its torso were covered in wraps.

Witch held her breath. A mummy? It certainly walked like a member of the undead, hunched over with terrible posture and knobby knees turned inward. Long, bone-thin arms swung from side to side with each heavy-footed step, and it drug the other foot forward slowly to meet the first.

The creature passed the barely open door she peeked out from, and she breathed a sigh of relief. The relaxation was temporary, however, as suddenly the figure filled the entirety of the crack in the door, a blank eye staring down at her. Witch yelped slightly, scuttling backwards and further into her hiding room as the mummy monster pulled the door open with thin fingers.

"You were looking at me?"

Witch gulped, holding her wand in front of her chest defensively and relighting the flame at the end. "Y-yeah sorry. I know I'm not supposed to be here I'm just...looking for a friend. Have you seen a little bat anywhere? She's about this big, pink, hearts on her wings…?"

With its mouth covered in bandages and its eyes completely white it proved difficult to discern any emotional reaction from the thing as it looked at her. "A bat? Is it from here?"

"Ehh, sort of?" Witch fumbled, "Well, not really. I'm still not too clear on the mechanics on how the whole bat thing came about but-"

"If it is not from here, it is likely in Her Majesty's throne room."

Her Majesty? That didn't sound good. Lady Baphomet probably wasn't thrilled about Boo being the creator of the opposition against her. Especially if she knew that Boo was the reason for Frighton's downfall in the first place.

"You are not from here either, are you?"

Witch tensed, fiddling with the brim of her hat nervously, "Well you see-"

"I will take you there, then."

"Oh that's really alright! If you just give me directions I'll just mosey on down there myself!" the Pretty Cure insisted nervously. The mummified figure shook its head, closing its long bony fingers around her wrist.

"No. I am Anubis, I will be your escort."

Making no further complaints, Witch followed where she was lead, though it wouldn't be difficult to outrun the thing if she were able to break away. It moved painfully slow, but its grip on her wrist was like a vice grip.

"So...what do you know about this castle?" she asked curiously, catching occasional glances of the view out the sporadic windows they passed.

"It is a castle for Her Majesty. We are building it to commemorate her campaign to raise Frighton from the ashes. One day we can rebuild everything. We will have a place in the universe again."

Witch frowned, but said nothing. Did the universe really need them? It felt like life had been just fine without them. In fact, everything was great until creatures from Frighton started poking around on Earth.

Occasionally, a dread or an anxoid would pass by silently. The anxoids didn't seem to notice her, but the dread turned their head ever so slightly in Witch's direction while they passed, their featureless faces impossible to read. None of them had terror masks on their tails, so she supposed they were no real threat to her now.

"What do they do here?" Witch finally piped up, pointing to a dread as it walked by the pair.

Anubis turned its head with a dry crack as its vertebrae shifted in its neck. "Those are The Dread. They are remnants of pure fear leftover from before the great collapse. They help control the anxoids and travel to other worlds on behalf of Her Majesty."

"Oh." That's right...Baphomet had mentioned she didn't retain her full power when on Earth. Witch shuddered at the thought of what she might be like here at full strength. "And the anxoids?"

"Servants. Builders. Whatever Her Majesty needs them to be."

"Why doesn't she just use The Dread for that?"

Anubis stared at her blankly, as though the question were ridiculously obvious. "There was only so much fear left here after our collapse. When we lost our position as the mediators of fear, someone else took over and we were left with only what we had. Anxoids come from other worlds and produce their own fear. This way we get work done and also replenish our supply."

Worlds? Just how many were there?

"What about you? What's your job?"

"I do not have one yet. I was only born today."

Witch blinked in confusion. "Then how do you know all this stuff?"

"I am made of the same fear as the dread and the anxoids, and even Her Majesty. We all know our history. I know these things just as I know two of my comrades have found your Earthling friends, just as I know Her Majesty awaits the three of you beyond these doors."

Before them stood a monumental door fit for any throne room. Stepping forward Anubis reached out with its free hand for the door, detaching the limb that held onto Witch in the process. Witch wrinkled her nose as she stared down at the dismembered arm that clinged to her wrist, and considered making a run for it now. As soon as the thought crossed her mind, a long strip of bandage that connected the dislodged arm to the torso it belonged her began to reel her, and the arm back to Anubis' side.

The door swung open with a creak, and beyond lay a sprawling room with vaulted ceilings and a single iron chandelier in the center. A large black throne of the same wrought iron as the chandelier sat against the far wall with a familiar figure seated upon it. Lady Baphomet made no movement as Witch entered the room, and her face remained as expressionless as always.

"Witch!"

Pumpkin's voice was a mixture of fear and relief as the purple cure was guided across the room. Witch noticed another odd creature with her, looking like a scarecrow and slumped over against her like it couldn't stand up on its own, and a third figure stood with Spectre, looking the most human of the three but still undeniably off.

"Pretty Cure. I am pleased to have you all here," Lady Baphomet's voice whispered in their ears. "I am glad to see you have met the newest additions to our Frighton family." Each girl looked with trepidation at the creature that had escorted them there. "Subjects, please step forward."

Reaper's long hair brushed against Spectre's face as it glided forward quickly, Scarecrow managing to lift itself off Pumpkin's shoulder and lurch a few steps forward. Anubis shared a brief glance with Witch before loosening the grip of its bony fingers and shuffling forward with the others.

"Praised be Your Majesty, may we ever fear your might."

The three monsters spoke in unison, the cures each exchanging glances with one another behind the backs of the creatures. Each girl had their wands in hand, though no one yet made a move to use them.

"Do you three know what you are?" Baphomet asked, drumming her spider leg fingers on the armrests of her throne that seemed to be made of scraps from the ruins scattered across Frighton.

"We are loyal servants to Your Majesty and her kingdom Frighton."

They spoke in unison once again, as though their minds became intertwined once all three stepped into the same room.

"No. You are much more than that. Pretty Cure, these three you see before you are beings of fear. But, they are unlike anything you have faced before, for these three beings have been birthed out of your own fear on your journey to this world."

The Cures stood in silence, Witch's mouth dropping agape at the revelation. Each of the creatures turned to face them once again, staring blankly at the oppositional three.

"They are more than just the fears of a mere human. They are PreFears. They match you in every conceivable way, and I do not believe you will be able to defeat them."

Slowly Lady Baphomet rose from her throne and placed her hands on her stomach, reaching inside the void of her body. With some effort she managed to pull out a large iron cage from her torso, holding it out to the side with one hand with little effort despite its size. Inside, curled on the bottom lay Evelyn who sat up as soon as she could see light through her closed eyelids.

"Pretty Cure!" she cried joyfully, though her face soon fell at the sight of the three PreFears before them. "Pretty Cure be careful! The monsters are much stronger here than back h-"

An aggressive shake from Lady Baphomet knocked the child off balance, sending her tumbling back down to the bottom of the cage. "If you want me to free this human, then you will submit to the PreFears. Let them bathe your entire essence in fear. With your power I will not need to harvest any more humans, I will leave your planet alone and release my captive."

"No don't do it!" Evelyn wailed, gripping the bars of her cage. "I will be fine; you must fight! You must destroy this place once and for all!" Tears began to roll down the girl's mottled cheeks. "There is nothing worth saving here anymore."

"**Pretty Cure Jack-o-Jinx!"**

A fireball propelled from Pumpkin's wand unexpectedly towards Lady Baphomet, but the goat-headed figure simply raised a hand and summoned a large black shield that swallowed the fireball whole.

"I do not appreciate dirty tactics," Baphomet hissed in a sinister whisper, beginning to disappear in wisps of smoke. "Pretty Fears, defend your ruler." With that she, and Evelyn, were both gone.

Each of the PreFears raised their hands above their heads, pulling weapons out of thin air. Fear Reaper created a long scythe, the blade glinting in the light of the chandelier above. Anubis produced a khopesh that it tossed maliciously from hand to hand, while Scarecrow pulled out a pitchfork that dragged on the ground with the creature's unusually off-balance posture.

The three girls huddled together quickly, each holding their bonewick wands out before them.

"**Banishing fear with the power of courage! We are Spooky! Pretty Cure!"**

Fear Reaper moved first. It moved wicked fast as it glided easily across the floor, sweeping its scythe low towards the Cure's legs. The three girls each leapt in different directions from the attack, and Reaper changed direction with frightening ease to pursue Spectre, its lips parted slightly and pulled into a wide smile. It swung again with the scythe, this time managing to knock Spectre off her feet. The Cure rolled and clambered desperately back to her feet and aimed her wand at her pursuer.

"**Pretty Cure Cobweb Curse!"**

The golden webbing shot from her wand and stuck Reaper's legs together, causing the figure to wobble off-balance. Spectre charged with fist clenched and pulled back, though her strike aimed at the creature's face was deflected by the back of its forearm. In one smooth motion Reaper managed to cut its legs free of the magical threads with its scythe, emitting a high pitched giggle as it swung at Spectre again.

Meanwhile, Scarecrow jabbed with its pitchfork at Pumpkin who narrowly dodged the oncoming assaults and managed to duck low and execute a sweep kick to knock the burlap-faced beast to the ground. Leaping into the air she swung her wand aggressively, aiming squarely for the monster's head as she launched another fiery pumpkin.

Moving surprisingly quick for how limp its body was, Scarecrow rolled out of the way of the attack and rose to its feet once again, taking a swipe at Pumpkin and knocking her out of the air.

"Pumpkin!" Witch cried, momentarily distracted from her close combat with Anubis. The opening allowed the mummified monster to knock her wand from her hands, which she had been using to block the attacks from its khopesh. Now all she had to defend herself from the slashes of the blade was quick thinking and even quicker feet as its long arms swung relentlessly.

Stumbling backwards, Witch caught her breath while Anubis stood still, its arm extended and pointing the khopesh towards her. Not entirely sure what to expect, she found herself caught by surprise when suddenly a blast of red light shot from the end of the blade and knocked her across the room, sending the purple Cure crashing into the far wall.

Spectre quickly rushed to her partner's aid, but Reaper moved much too quickly to outrun. It placed itself between her and Witch, spinning its scythe in its hands and creating a whirlwind that blew Spectre in the opposite direction.

Unexpectedly, a fireball flew across the room toward Reaper. It dodged just in time, but moved dangerously close to Witch who had recovered her discarded wand and swung it upside the monster's head with a satisfying crack. Anubis sent a flurry of bandages at Pumpkin, wrapping her arms down to her sides while Reaper slowly turned to look at Witch.

For once its thick bangs had fallen away from its face, revealing a single, vertical red eye in the center of the pale face that locked directly onto the purple cure. The stare had an immobilizing effect on Witch who stared in horror until Scarecrow knocked her backwards. It raised its pitchfork over her, but before it could drive it down another golden web shot through the throne room and secured around the slack monster, hurling it into the wall behind Spectre as she whipped it over her head.

Pumpkin struggled against her bindings until Witch sent a careening kick into Anubis' gut, causing it to loosen its hold on the orange Cure who quickly wriggled free. The fight wore on with only small victories made by either side. Clearly both sides were growing tired however, as their movements became slower and attacks more labored. Eventually, the three PreCures grouped up once again, breathing heavily while the PreFears did the same, no one making a move to harm the other.

"We're not getting anywhere with this," Spectre breathed in exasperation, her partners nodding in agreement.

"Then succumb...and join us," Scarecrow hissed softly from across the room.

"It's not that bad," Reaper insisted, leaning on its scythe for support. "Once we rebuild, Frighton will be a good place to live again."

Anubis nodded, "We were whole once, become one with us again and we can prosper."

"Don't you see anything wrong with what Lady Baphomet is doing?" Pumpkin asked desperately, "She is capturing people from other planets! She is turning people with minds and hearts and feelings into nothing but fear."

"Do we not deserve a place to live as well?" Reaper demanded, "What about us? No one fought for us when we needed someone except for Lady Baphomet. We will not let you destroy her, destroy us, again."

Witch frowned, looking down at her boots as sweat dripped off the end of her nose. They had a point. What was it they were fighting for? Did they want to destroy Frighton again? Was that even possible? When Countess had taken them down something still remained...wasn't destroying fear an act of fear itself?

"I understand," she finally spoke softly. Taking a shaky breath, she stepped forward and extended a hand out towards the trio of PreFears. "Anubis. Why don't you come join me instead? Fear is no place to live...but with me you can experience everything, happiness, sadness, love, and fear...I won't fight you. I think we can help one another, but you have to trust me."

Anubis' empty white eyes widened, and it clutched its khopesh close to its chest. "N-no that is not what we were told!" Witch opened her arms out wide, taking one slow step closer.

"It's okay. You don't need to be afraid."

"Being afraid is all I know!" Anubis hissed, dropping its blade and pressing its hands against its head. "Fear is all I have ever been, recycled through the universe but hated all the same. It is all I can do! Lady Baphomet is the only one who has ever cared about us!"

Witch closed her eyes slowly, "You're right. I hated fear for so long, and it wasn't right of me. You are useful. You are important. But you shouldn't be isolated all by yourself. Please, I know it's scary but please trust me."

The other Cures reached out for Witch nervously, and though her eyes remained closed she responded to their concern, "No, it's okay. I need you two to trust me too. Okay?"

Anubis looked fretfully from Reaper to Scarecrow, both of whom shook their heads vehemently. Still, with hesitant, shuffling steps it moved towards Witch's open arms. Once it stood close enough, she slowly wrapped her arms around the thin creature, hugging it tight. The Pretty Fears jumped at this action, raising their weapon until Anubis too matched the embrace.

"I'm so excited to get to know you better, Anubis," Witch said softly, a gentle smile gracing her lips. Suddenly, a bright light shone between them, filling the room with its glittering rays in a multitude of colors. Anubis held on tighter as the light between them shone through its body as it slowly became transparent

"Anubis!" Reaper shrieked, heaving its scythe above its head as the light began to disintegrate pieces the mummified figure.

"I'm okay."

"How does...it feel?" Scarecrow asked worriedly.

"It feels...nice. Warm, and comforting. I'm happy."

Only a moment later Anubis burst into glittering light, and slowly Witch dropped her hands down to her sides. After a pause, she opened her eyes with a serene smile. "Please, join forces with us. We will speak to Lady Baphomet when we are finished, I promise. We won't let you live in fear forever."

With small smiles, Spectre and Pumpkin stepped forward, nodding reassuringly.

"Please?" Pumpkin asked quietly, opening her arms. "We can be whole together."

"I need you," Spectre insisted, doing the same.

The remaining Pretty Fears exchanged fearful glances with each other, Scarecrow being the first to lurch forward, dropping its pitchfork and loosely wrapping its arms around Pumpkin. Reaper lingered behind, holding its scythe in front of itself defensively as light burst from Scarecrow as it began to disappear.

"Reaper...you...do not need...to be afraid," Scarecrow breathed softly, letting out a long exhale as it too burst into glittering shimmers of light.

Spectre smiled encouragingly, letting her eyes drift closed. With notable reluctance, it took one step forward, and then another. On the third step it wrapped its arms hesitantly around Spectre who in turn held it tightly. As the light shone from the two of them, Reaper finally let its scythe fall to the floor with a clatter until it too became light.

The three Cures looked at one another with gentle smiles, Witch reaching out and taking one hand from each of her partners. Wordlessly, the trio exited the room hand in hand, in search of their final obstacle.


	25. Chapter 25- Finale

The red sun that hung in the sky pulsed with increased fervor, as though the very heartbeat of Frighton were quickening. The fog that hung over the greyed landscape swirled shook with even the slightest of movement through its depths. The trio of Pretty Cure left a trembling trail of dissipating fog in their wake as they exited the shell of a castle in search of Lady Baphomet.

In the castle grounds, the strange flowers writhed as they passed, their petals still stretched into what looked like a silent scream. The girls walked hand in hand, each squeezing hard in a mix of determination and uncertainty as cold tingles of fear crept up their spines.

The resounding silence pressed down with immeasurable weight on their chests as they walked by the light of the pulsating sun, their own heartbeats thudding dull in their ears to the same rapid pace of the star. Their steps were sure footed, though they knew not where they were headed, as though the Pretty Fears that had rejoined them guided the way to where they would find the ruler of Frighton.

"Hey…" Pumpkin broke the silence, orange eyes downcast as she spoke nervously, "I just wanted to let you both know that...no matter what happens, I love you." Spectre's face softened from steely resolve into a gentle smile, and Witch let out a weak, nervous laugh.

"Same," Witch assured the both of them, Spectre stepping before the other two and pulling everyone into a tight hug.

"I know we'll be okay," the blue cure insisted gently. The trio held their embrace for a while, each girl reluctant to step back and continue the arduous journey forward. Eventually they reached a point where all the fog stopped abruptly, as though an invisible barrier blocked it from spreading any further. The barrier posed no resistance to the Pretty Cure however, and each girl stepped beyond the boundary of the fog to see what lay beyond.

The dreary grey landscape continued onward, mostly flat and uninteresting save for a tall black mass that stood alone in the center of the fogless ring. Upon closer inspection, the object a ways before them appeared to be a tree, dark and gnarled with a distinct hook in its posture and its branches twisting up into a menacing point and forming a sort of cage within the branches.

Though tightly wound, the Pretty Cure could make out the shape of a figure sitting within the wooden cage. Curly strands of Evelyn's dark hair poked out from between the barring branches as she leaned up against her arbor prison with her back to the team of warriors.

"Evelyn!" Spectre cried against her better judgment, running up to the twisted tree that held the young girl prisoner.

Evelyn turned around quickly, startled by the cry ringing through the silence. "Cure Spectre, look out!" she warned in desperation as a branch uncurled itself and whipped out towards the blue cure. The quick and unexpected attack caught the cure off guard, and sent her flying backwards towards her companions. Just as suddenly as it had unwound, the branch replaced itself back around the others to secure the girl once more. Pumpkin assisted Spectre back to her feet while Witch approached the tree more cautiously.

"Evelyn, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," the girl insisted, peering with one eye from between the branches. "You need to destroy this place soon! If Lady Baphomet harvests any more fear I don't think anything will be able to stop her!"

Witch pressed her lips into a thin line with concern, "I-I don't know that we can destroy this place. I think we might need another plan…"

"But you beat the Pretty Fears, right? Then you must be strong enough!" Evelyn insisted, gripping the branches that surrounded her.

"We didn't," Witch said softly, Pumpkin and Spectre cautiously approaching the tree as well. "We couldn't beat them, they were made from us so they were just as strong. But we were able to convince them to rejoin us, we told them we would talk to Lady Baphomet."

Evelyn's eyes widened, and she shook her head vehemently, "No! She won't listen to you!" she cried, choking on her words as they tumbled past her lips.

"I know you're scared, but we will figure something out," Witch insisted, looking from Pumpkin to Spectre before taking a few steps closer to the tree and extending her hand, "I promise."

A small, dark hand with pale fingers reached out towards her between the branches, but before the two could make contact a branch swung out one again, colliding with Witch who gripped the branch as it swung. Her refusal to let go seemed to elicit a reaction from the tree as the branch wrapped tightly around her waist.

"Now!"

Both Pumpkin and Spectre jumped towards the gap now present in the wooden cage, reaching for the young girl. Spectre's fingers managed to brush against Evelyn's arm, but she was quickly struck with another branch that coiled around her. Pumpkin was caught around the ankle and swung into the air by another branch, providing her enough time to pull out her wand. Before she could cast her spell, the branch snapped her arms tightly down to her sides as it coiled around her.

With ample room to escape Evelyn jumped from the center of the tree, but the same fate that had befallen the others soon fell upon the child as she too was wrapped by branches that secured her firmly in her place.

"Oh. Fuck," Witch muttered, struggling a bit against the binding branch.

Spectre shot her a nasty look, "Excuse you, there are children."

"I did not expect you here so quickly."

The harsh whisper in their ears signaled the arrival of Lady Baphomet, though none of the Pretty Cure could spot her from where they were held. Slowly she emerged from the fog as though made of it, the swirls of clouds darkening and giving her her distinct tall, dark and lanky figure.

"I also did not expect you to get caught so quickly, so that is a pleasant surprise."

"Baphomet! Put us down or I'll shove your pointy goat head right up your-"

"Pumpkin! The child!" Spectre pleaded desperately.

"Futile threats aside," the harsh whispers continued, "I am curious to know how you managed to defeat the Pretty Fears."

"It was all your fault really," Spectre chided, "Because you told them right in front of us that they came from our own sense of fear."

Witch nodded, "So we simply accepted them back into ourselves, it was as simple as that. And now that your last line of defense is gone, we would like to talk to you."

If this news surprised Lady Baphomet, it was impossible to tell with her blank, unmoving stare. She was silent for a long while until a low hiss of a laugh snaked through the air. "And what makes you think they were my last line of defense? They had not even been created until you came here, surely you do not think I would have forgone planning something ahead of time?"

A sinking feeling weighed on the hearts of the girls as Lady Baphomet stood motionless before them. "Now, with that in mind, what was it that you wanted to speak about?"

"You have to stop harvesting fear from other worlds!" Spectre demanded.

"Frighton does not have to be an evil place!" Pumpkin scolded, "It has become this way because of you."

"NO!" The cordial hiss of Lady Baphomet's voice broke into a deep growl. "It became this way long before I was created. That was why your little bat friend attempted to wipe us out. Surely she would have told you that?"

Witch's eyes widened as the realization dawned on her that she had not seen the pink bat fairy since arriving on Frighton, "Boo, where is she? What have you done with her?!"

Another low hissing laugh echoed in their ears, this one even more spiteful than the last. "She is being...dealt with. Last I saw she was in the hands of one of my most loyal anxoids."

A choked sob followed this declaration, and the Pretty Cure looked down to see tears bubbling over in Evelyn's eyes. "Why would you hurt Boo? Why are you so cruel? You don't care about Frighton! You don't care about anybody!"

"You are correct. I am cruel because the universe is cruel, my child. Once I extinguish the Pretty Cure one by one I am sure you will have an even better understanding. You cannot put your faith in others, only in yourself." The branches that held each of the magical warriors began to constrict tighter, and Pumpkin let out a strained gasp of pain.

"Y-you won't be able to!" The orange cure spat.

Cure Spectre winced, "Just as you cannot destroy fear, you cannot destroy courage!"

"Even when we are gone, our hope and courage will remain! If not us, then someone else will rise to take our places and destroy you!" Witch shouted. A strange feeling stirred within her chest, and unexpectedly the voice of Anubis carried on the air from no identifiable source, much like Baphomet's did.

"You do not care about the people of Frighton."

"You...used us...and everyone else," Scarecrow's voice followed.

"You will pay for these transgressions," Reaper hissed.

All three Pretty Fears joined their disembodied voices in unison.

"We grant our powers to the Pretty Cure, defenders of Frighton, and the universe!"

Three loud explosions echoed out across the blank landscape, colorful clouds mixing together in a rainbow of glitter and smoke as splinters of the branches flew outward. Just as in their transformations the girls floated amongst the clouds that swirled turbulent around them as their Pretty Cure uniforms began to glow, and shift. Their gloves all grew longer, reaching up to their shoulders while their boots did the same, small little bat wings sprouting from their ankles.

Their skirts all billowed out further, becoming fuller as additional ruffles padded their petticoats. With a flash of light their corsets were changed from grey to bright white, and as their spiderweb leotards peeled away the bows on their chests unfurled and wrapped around their necks to hold up the outfits. Each girl's hair grew even longer than before, Witch's pigtails cris-crossing and curling over themselves. Pumpkin's twin buns unraveled and joined in a large bun atop her head with two long strands of orange hair hanging down, a pair of tiny bat wings poking out from her top knot. Spectre's ponytail stretched out to impossible lengths, and would have dragged along the ground were it not for the strange weightlessness it posessed that allowed it to float like an ethereal spirit behind her.

Finally, a ribbon of light encircled Witch's head, a long, oversized witches hat adorned with lace-trimmed ribbon popping into place. The three girls embraced one another, planting a gentle kiss of encouragement on one another's cheeks as they began to hurtle downwards. Despite the speed at which they fell, each girl landed with sure footing as the rainbow of colorful clouds burst away from them, revealing their new forms to a startled Evelyn and blank-faced Baphomet.

"**The mischievous silhouette on a moonlit night fighting for hope! Spooky! Cure Witch!"**

"**The warm smile on an autumn night fighting for happiness! Spooky! Cure Pumpkin!"**

"**The ghostly chill on a frightful night fighting for love! Spooky! Cure Spectre!"**

"_**Evildoers beware, for we are the ambassadors of fear and emissaries of courage! We are Terribly Spooky! Pretty Cure!"**_

The trio wasted no time in dashing for Lady Baphomet who stood immobile at the edge of the fogless ring. Spooky! Cure Witch whipped out her wand, which was now adorned with a large purple ribbon, the other two doing the same.

"_**Pretty Cure! Jack-o-Jinx Juggernaut!"**_

Spooky! Cure Pumpkin's bonewick wand launched a flurry of pumpkin fireballs at the figure who had to glide quickly out of the way to avoid the onslaught of explosions as the fireballs burst apart where she had stood only moments before. Witch was prepared for such an action, already beginning to draw a five pointed sigil above her head and launching it upward.

"_**Pretty Cure! Haunted Hex Hail!"**_

Purple stars began to rain down from the sky all around, simply bursting apart like glittering raindrops on the Pretty Cure but leaving smoking holes in the ground and knocking the goat-headed figure over. Spooky! Cure Spectre leapt into the air, her long ponytail drifting weightlessly behind her as she took aim with an attack of her own.

"_**Pretty Cure! Cobweb Curse Constriction!"**_

A spiderweb launched from her wand and wrapped around Lady Baphomet who had only just stood to her feet upon impact, the glittering thread tightening around her in a vicegrip not unlike the one the Pretty Cure had been held in moments before.

"Lady Baphomet, we don't want to fight you. But you have to stop what you are doing, don't you want Frighton to be something more than a place people hate?"

"You would not understand. You have never had to build your life up out of nothing. After your friend destroyed my home I was the only one left here. But now no one will do anything I do not like. No one will dare to cross me, especially after I have destroyed you, Pretty Cure."

Her voice was listless, as though unbothered by the tight constricting binds around her. The only thing that gave her away was the slight downcast of her head, her empty eyes drifting downwards. Watching her intently, the Pretty Cure did not notice the large black mass lumbering their way through the fog until it was right upon them. With a mighty bound the giant beast that was once a quiet school girl swiped at Spectre, knocking her backwards and severing the spell that held Lady Baphomet. Howling aggressively, the large bipedal beast leapt between the warriors and the ruler of Frighton who stood up straight once again.

"Now, I have an army that will do anything I say. On your world I may be solitary and limited in power but here...I am god."

The beast gnashed its teeth at the girls, all of whom stumbled clumsily out of the way. "You think that's going to stop us?!" Pumpkin challenged, clenching her fists which spontaneously ignited in brilliant, glittering flames. "We've already fought this thing before, and that was without the powerups!"

Darting towards the creature she swung a flaming fist into its gut, sending it toppling backwards. Raising her wand to the sky once again Witch unleashed a flurry of falling stars from the sky that sizzled upon impact with both Lady Baphomet, who did her best to drift in between the shower of stars, and the monster that howled at the onslaught. Spectre sprinted across the barren earth and landed a swift kick to the beast, aiming her wand at Baphomet as she leapt off the monster, casting another constriction spell towards her.

"You cannot beat us!" Spectre cried as she sailed through the air, the small capelet that encircled her shoulders fluttering in the wind, "You are only fear, but we have fear and so much more! Hope and love and happiness and courage!" Baphomet attempted to dodge the attack from the blue cure, but as she drifted sideways she found herself face to face with Cure Pumpkin who delivered a hard right hook to the goat monster's face before the spell enclosed her once again.

With the dread monster breathing raggedly on the ground before the secured Lady Baphomet, the Cures too took a moment to catch their breath, though no one took their eyes off of the sinewy ruler. No one spoke, end even Evelyn who remained in the tree felt tempted to hold her breath during the pause.

A deep, barely audible rumble turned into a soft chortle, which in turn grew to a brazen cackle. Lady Baphomet threw back her head as she laughed an unnerving laugh as none of the features of her face moved even the slightest despite the emphatic cackle.

"So...much...more?" she managed between laughs. "Oh my dear, if so much more is what you expect from me then I suppose I will have to show you how much more I have to offer."

An inhuman screeching noise began to ring loud in everyone's ears, as the Cures fell to their knees at the maddening noise, clapping their hands over their ears. They noticed the beast on the ground beginning to move, but not like it was getting up. Instead it churned, as though it were made of liquid, and soon began to boil. As the bubbles of darkness erupted along its skin the thick black ooze began to move towards Lady Baphomet.

The screech continued and in the distance more black goop began to slither quickly towards them, towards the self-described god of Frighton. Upon reaching her the goop began to add to the mass of her body, and she grew thicker, and taller than ever before. A wail distinct from the screech that emanated from Baphomet carried across the barren land as soon droves of dread could be seen charging their way, each in varying states of melting. Pieces of them fell off to the ground with a wet splat, but even the discarded globs continued towards the goat woman. What remained in tact of the dread jumped headfirst into the churning darkness that composed Lady Baphomet, and a dark smoke billowed around her ever growing form the more she grew.

As the darkness that had enshrouded Colette joined up with Lady Baphomet, the young girl was left lying in the dirt, her skin ashen and her eyes blank white. Gritting her teeth in determination Witch took her hands off her ears and forced herself to her feet, darting towards Colette and scooping up the girl in her arms, dashing for the tree. With a swift chop of her hands she splintered what remained of Evelyn's cage and pulled the young child into her arms as well, leaping as far away as she could and depositing the two on the far edge of the fogless ring.

"Stay here, if Colette wakes up tell her she'll be home soon," Witch said sternly, Evelyn's eyes wide and glistening with tears, though she nodded slowly as Witch took off back towards the others.

The sight that greeted her made her blood run cold.

Whatever Lady Baphomet had become was a strange amalgamation of what she had been, and what a dread looked like. Its size was immense, towering well above the Pretty Cure and emitting a deep, menacing laugh. It's four legs were reminiscent of those of a dread, but composed of sharp, jagged turns that looked as though Lady Baphomet's limbs had broken at odd angles, having a few too many joints than normal in the long spidery legs that ended in a sharp point on the ground. Its back arched high and bent sharply at an angle, its spine ending in a long thrashing tail tipped with an eyeless snake-like face that dripped black ooze from its fangs. Around its neck sprouted a thick ruffle of dense, coarse fur, and its ears were long and thin, swept back along with jagged lightning bolt like horns from the top of its head. The top of its face was primarily white like Baphomet's though instead of two blank black eyes the white face was dominated by a large vertical eye in the center with dark red irises being the only color on the otherwise monochrome beast. The chin of the beast was black, and as it lowered a set of long pointed teeth revealed themselves, as did a long black serpentine tongue.

"So, Pretty Cure. It seems you have underestimated the power of fear...is this "more" enough for you?" As with before the voice did not seem to come from the mouth of the monstrosity, but unlike Baphomet's previous incarnation they could see the red eye trained on them, and a glint of malicious glee. "You are not the only ones capable of powering yourselves with my feeble subordinates. But while you are only able to join with those made from your fear, I can consume the power of any fear...and that is why you do not stand a chance."

Just as she finished speaking the snake tail lashed out towards Pumpkin, knocking her off her feet. No sooner had she swung her bonewick wand than the tail's fangs closed down, narrowly missing her body and instead clamping down on the wand which Pumpkin then discarded, running off out of range of the beast.

Witch raised her wand to the sky once again, bringing a torrential downpour of purple glittering stars, though they did not appear to be doing as much damage as before, and one of the sharp pointed feet of Baphomet jabbed at her, striking the Cure in the side as she leapt out of the way from a head on attack. She let out a cry of pain as she crumpled to the ground, holding her side while Cure Spectre launched an attack of her own, using the web to trap the leg to the ground. Much to everyone's dismay, Lady Baphomet chuckled and simply raised her other foreleg, a quick jab severing the ties of the spiderweb spell.

Lady Baphomet lumbered forward and opened her wide mouth, setting loose a spray of dark sludge that began to burn the ground upon contact. Spectre was able to scoop up Witch and leap out of the way just in time to avoid the toxic spray, joining Pumpkin a ways back.

"This doesn't look good," Pumpkin murmured.

"We have...to keep going," Witch insisted, wincing slightly and holding her side. "Everyone is...depending on us."

Without another word the purple cure leapt back into action, dodging the jabs of the stilt-like legs and ducking under the wide snapping jaws as she rounded the beast. Leaping above Lady Baphomet Cure Witch aimed her wand directly at the adversary, drawing a pentagram in the air that etched its way into the earth below the beast. As soon as the sigil was completed a purple light shot upwards and Lady Baphomet roared as she began to burn in the light, a few chunks of black goo falling to the ground. Raising one jagged spidery leg she stabbed the tip into the earth, creating a crack that broke the pentagram beneath her and short circuiting the spell as she caught her breath.

Spectre dove quickly into the fray leaving the struggling god without much time to recuperate. Witch fell from the sky holding her injured side, but landed lightly on a golden net cast out by her partner who cast another spell, this one like a long whip from the end of her wand which wrapped around Baphomet's horns. With a firm jerk the blue cure pulled the monster's face down into the dirt as Pumpkin broadsided the terror with fists ablaze.

"That's it guys!" Witch cheered, raising her wand once again. The momentary rejoice was all too brief, as a wide sweep of her long spider leg sent Witch toppling. Distracted briefly, Pumpkin looked down to her partner in concern just long enough for the toothy tail to wrap firmly around her. A quick tug from the monstrous head sent Spectre flying only for her to be slapped back down into the ground, a lethally pointed foot poised gently atop both her chest and Witch's, while the snake-headed tail snapped its venomous jaws at Cure Pumpkin.

The solitary red eye of Lady Baphomet focused on the two cures beneath her forelegs, another deep rumble of laughter grinding through their ears.

"It is really too bad that no one on your home world will remember you fondly. If they knew how much of a fight you put up, maybe they would change their minds about you. Pity you will not be mourned."

"_**Pretty Cure Ghastly Guillotine!"**_

A hot pink blade of light shot through the air and collided with Lady Baphomet sending her flying with black goo spurting from the point of impact and leaving a small trail of droplets across the ground. Pumpkin landed deftly on the ground and ran to help up the other two, but was beaten by a figure she had never seen before.

This girl had long, pink hair fashioned in a jagged ponytail not unlike a bat's wing. She had a high, regal collar and a frilly pink ascot poking out over her chest clad with a spiderweb top. Long jagged coattails lay on top of a full black skirt, and only a sliver of her dark skin could be seen between the bottom of the skirt and the top of her grey thigh high boots, matching the grey corset snugly around her waist. The mysterious figure reached out two pink-gloved hands towards Witch and Spectre, all three Pretty Cure looking on in awe.

"B-Boo?" Pumpkin breathed, catching the pink-eyed gaze of the newcomer. The figure smiled gently as she pulled up the other two to their feet.

"You can call me Cure Countess thank you very much!"

"Boo!" Witch threw her arms tightly around the pink warrior, Spectre and Pumpkin following suit shortly thereafter.

"Wow, I can't leave you guys alone for two seconds without everything falling apart!" Countess teased, though she returned the embrace with genuine relief.

"She told us she had you captured!" Spectre sniffled, burying her face against the girl's shoulder.

"Hey, no tears! She did have me for a while there...but suddenly all my captors just melted and slithered away. I guess they knew better than to mess with the fearless fairy!"

Pumpkin looked up in awe at the fairy's new, or rather old, form. "How did you transform?"

Countess shrugged and laughed sheepishly, "I don't know, the way I always used to. I knew you guys were in trouble and it just came easily. I guess I left that part of myself here on Frighton!" she laughed.

A low roar signaled the return of Lady Baphomet whose hulking form glided forward smoothly on quick legs, though she still spurted bits of black gunk from the wound created by Countess' attack. The pink cure pointed her weapon, which looked like a much longer bonewick wand, at the beast.

"Come back for another taste of my vampire staff, hmm? I'll show you the pain you've caused everyone else tenfold!"

Jabbing her staff into the ground for leverage the pink cure hurled herself into the air, moving deftly as she dodged an acid spray from Lady Baphomet's mouth. Countess soared above the beast, launching a few well placed blades of light down at the monster. Landing just behind it, Countess blocked incoming jabs from Baphomet's snake tail with a flourish of her staff, each movement calculated with practiced precision.

The other three, haggard as they were, charged back into battle with their newly transformed comrade. Spectre darted in between the legs of the monster, snagging each spindly limb with a sugar web as she slid underneath the roaring beast. Lady Baphomet wobbled, unsteady on her legs which were each secured to the ground by the spell.

Fists ablaze, Pumpkin soared towards the target with her right hand pulled back to deliver a square punch to the monster's ribs, effectively broadsiding the beast and increasing Baphomet's wobbling as she struggled to maintain her balance. Witch took to the skies, bringing her heel down hard between Lady Baphomet's horns with a loud crack as the axe kick made contact with the pale white face.

This blow sent Baphomet crumpling to the ground with another roar, though this one sounded markedly more feeble than the last.

"Your feeble attacks...will not defeat me!" she hissed, jerking on the ground as the four girls regrouped. "I emerged alone from the darkness of destruction...to rule Frighton is my right!" With another jerk one of her legs snapped free and stabbed at the Pretty Cure who leaped further back and out of her reach.

"We have to finish this," Cure Countess murmured sternly, spinning her staff with a flourish so that the small flame at the tip pointed at the other three girls. "We can do it, together."

The three Spooky! Cures nodded, each grabbing their bonewick wands and pointing the small flames that danced at the end together until the fire joined all four devices. As soon as all four burned together the flames erupted into a dazzling column of fire that blazed skyward. All four shielded their eyes, but the heat did not scorch them, rather it felt like the gentle warmth of a welcoming embrace.

Each girl placed their free hand on the Pretty Cure beside her, tensing slightly as each felt the potential energy surging through their fingertips.

**"Pretty Cure…!"**

All the girls tossed their weapons up into the column of flames which danced gloriously at the offering, forging something entirely new from the materials offered. Soaring up into the air all four braced themselves and stuck their hand in the glittering fire, each hand finding hold of a larger, much heftier weapon.

**"Devil's Pitchfork!"**

In unison all four aligned themselves and pulled out what the fire had forged for them, a long ivory staff topped with sharp prongs, small flames still quivering in anticipation at the end of each spike.

They moved together like a finely tuned machine, each girl's arms maneuvering without much necessary thought to aim the weapon down at the monster that scratched at the earth desperately, emitting spits of toxic sludge and hissing in protest.

**"Pretty Cure! Halloween Hellfire!"**

The blaze that hurtled towards Lady Baphomet seemed to have a life of its own as it charged at the beast who still struggled against her bindings. She retaliated with a spray of her toxins, but this was quickly burned away to nothing but smog by the vivacious flames. With a high pitched shriek Lady Baphomet's singular red eye locked on the Pretty Cure, her mouth opening once again this time to spit dark thick goo. This goo dampened some of the fire much more readily than the misty spray, but as the Cures looked on they noticed the longer she sprayed this sludge, the smaller she became.

"She's using up her own body! If we can just hold her off a bit longer…!" Countess shouted, gripping onto the pitchfork more tightly. The other three nodded, all focusing their energies of the flame that jetted out at their nemesis who continued to spit out the pieces of herself like vomit. Tears began to sting at Cure Countess' fuchsia eyes, and she shut them tightly, wrinkling her hooked nose in determination.

"_**The flutter of wings on a hallowed night that fights for friendship! I am Cure Countess and I will not let you hurt my friends, our planet, or our universe!"**_

The three girls nodded in determination.

"_**Evildoers beware, for we are the ambassadors of fear and emissaries of courage! We are Terribly Spooky! Pretty Cure!"**_

Whatever muck Lady Baphomet had left was not enough to stop the sudden sure as the flames engulfed her beastly form, the glittering wisps casting gentle rainbows of light as her hisses were drowned out by the ensuing explosion.

The four fell back down to the ground as the spell dissipated, each girl's chest heaving to catch their lost breath. With the magical synchronization broken, the Devil's Pitchfork burst apart and each girl's individual weapon clattered to the ground before the winded Pretty Cure.

Reaching for her staff, Cure Countess planted the end into the ground to help her stand as she walked in a kind of dizzy daze over to the clearing smoke where the beast once was. Lady Baphomet had returned to her usual form, a pale white goat's head with empty eyes, and a thin dark body that was curled up in a sort of fetal position. She looked smaller than initially, when once she stood taller than Fay she now seemed to be of average height, no taller than Countess herself.

The pink cure's eyes were cold as she approached the shaking figure, who lifted her head weakly to speak in a raspy whisper, "You...cannot...defeat me. Fear...will always exist. I...will always return…"

"I don't care. I should have been more thorough in destroying this place last time, I'm not going to leave here until neither you, nor anything else can come crawling back up from the rubble."

"Boo…" Witch called weakly, clutching her side as she sat up.

"Boo don't," Pumpkin pleaded in a feeble whisper, able to raise herself up slowly on her elbows.

"You can't get rid of it," Fay said gently, getting onto her knees.

Cure Countess paid them no mind, touching the end of her vampire staff to Lady Baphomet's throat. **"Pretty Cure, Ghastly Guillo-"**

"_**Milena!"**_

The sound of her name startled the pink warrior enough to stop her mid-incantation, pulling her weapon back and clutching it close as something approached. The thick bobbing tresses were the first thing the girls could make out, and the little shape of a child running towards them through the smoke of the explosion. Evelyn wheezed as she reached them, passing the three girlfriends and tossing her arms tightly around Countess' legs.

"Milena...no…"

Countess' eyes went wide, and she braced herself with her staff as her heart began to race. "Y-you? Evelyn? How do you know my name?"

"Milena, you can't kill her...promise me you won't kill her."

Beginning to shake, the taller girl pried herself free from the child's grasp, taking a few steps back as her eyes darted between the faces of the other cures in search of answers.

"What is going on?! Tell me what is going on!"

"I...I'm sorry I couldn't tell you sooner," Evelyn sniffled, rubbing her eyes with her patchwork hands. "I wanted to but I didn't want you to feel any guilt...I just wanted to help you where I could, when I could...I didn't realize until I was captured and Baphomet made the Pretty Fe-"

"Stop!" Countess cried, dropping to her knees and gripping her head in her hands.

There was a resounding silence that felt too heavy to break with something as feeble as a word. Each Spooky Cure looked between one another in dismay, and then back to the pair just beyond them.

"Wh-what are you talking about…" Countess finally breathed, looking at the child with tear-stained cheeks before her. The child took a shaking breath, her fingers trembling along with her breathing as she held out her hands and closed her eyes. Slowly, the pale patches that dotted her dark skin began to shake, and then to wriggle their way across her body. Each little patch flitted across her with the delicate gentleness of a butterfly's wing until she stood with a vertical line down the center of her body, one half a pale pink and the other a warm brown. When she opened her eyes the left had become a bright blue, the right a dark red, and a third eye in a vibrant purple shade opened up on her forehead. Like a cartoon the girl began to zip in half down the center line until she disappeared in a puff of colored smoke not unlike those in the bon-bombs, only to reappear as a three-headed dog around the size of a retriever.

The three cures had since huddled together tightly, unwilling to let one another go as they watched the scene unfold before them while Countess was simply left to hug her arms around herself in disbelief.

"Milena…" Cera spoke.

"Please…" Berry continued.

"Forgive us." Russ completed.

Countess dove towards the fairy, pulling them into a tight hug as tears began to roll down her face. "Y-you're here! You're alive! I thought...I thought something happened to you while I was underground...I didn't know you were still...on earth!"

Each of Cerberus' heads nuzzled into the cure, Russ licking her cheek comfortingly.

"Well someone had to try and manage the fear currents of the universe while Frighton was out of commission," Berry explained matter-of-factly.

"We had just figured out a system too, when The Dread started showing up and ruining everything," Cera muttered crossly.

"That's right!" Witch exclaimed suddenly, "You were there with your babysitter when the attacks first started!"

Cera's head turned back to face Witch, "That wasn't really our babysitter."

"We made that up so you'd come help," Berry explained.

"We're hundreds of years old, we don't need a babysitter," Russ added indignantly.

"Hundreds of years…?" Countess asked, the color beginning to drain from her face. "You were a puppy when we met...How...how old am I?"

The pause said more than words ever could.

"We first encountered you...about…" Berry scrunched up her snout as she thought.

"Ninteen...forty? Fifty?" Russ suggested.

"Nineteen fifty one, actually," Cera corrected.

The trio of cures gasped softly, and Countess fell into another heavy silence, eyes downcast to the dusty grey earth beneath her.

"1951...I was a teenager in 1951…" Her fists balled up tightly and hot tears moistened the dry terrain below. "Then how am I still alive?!"

Russ hung his head, and Berry spoke up gently, "We weren't sure ourselves. We had gone so long without finding any trace of you…"

"We thought you had died," Russ said solemnly.

"It wasn't until Lady Baphomet spoke to the Pretty Fears that we understood," Cera explained in a soft murmur.

Standing abruptly to her feet Countess crossed back to the feeble Lady Baphomet, still shaking and curled up on the ground, the three cures jumping to their feet as well.

"Boo don't-" Witch spoke, but Countess had already grasped one of Lady Baphomet's horns firmly in her hand.

"Do you know what's wrong with me?!" she demanded through tears, tugging up sharply on the horn in an attempt to bring the remnants of their nemesis to her feet.

Lady Baphomet grasped onto Countess' arm with a weak grip, venom in her words as she spoke. "All I know about you is that you are the cause of all the destruction here. You are the reason I was left here alone."

"Milena," Russ whimpered softly.

"Please put her down," Berry pleaded.

"She is the last missing part of you, your Pretty Fear."

Countess dropped the creature back to the ground and stepped backwards, tumbling over her own two feet and into the arms of the girls behind her who gently helped her back up, exchanging worried glances.

"Boo- Countess. It's okay," Witch said softly. "We know what to do! The two of you can rejoin as one, and you can be whole again!"

Pumpkin nodded encouragingly, "Then all of this will be over-"

"No!" This time Lady Baphomet's voice shook with an amalgam of fear and rage. "We are not the same."

"We're so sorry, Lady Baphomet," Cerberus murmured, all heads bowed. "We did not think anyone was left when Countess took down Frighton...we did not know her presence would give birth to something new...we should have looked for you as we looked for Milena."

"If you rejoin with Countess," Spectre encouraged, "Then you can be complete again."

Lady Baphomet quivered, so unlike the calm and stoic presence she had been so long. "No, I was born into this world alone, destined to rule. I am not meant for being a part of something else I am meant for controlling everything else."

Countess took a few steps towards the shaking figure curled up on the ground, slowly lowering herself down to the ground. "I thought I could cure fear. I thought that was my job as a Pretty Cure. When I awoke as a bat back on earth it looked like I had succeeded, but all I did was trap you here alone. I am sorry." Lady Baphomet turned her pale head away, refusing to look at the pink cure knelt beside her. "I know how scary it is to feel alone. Just knowing that the life I once had is gone, that no one I knew is left, it must be what you felt like. Waking up in a strange place without anyone else. But maybe...maybe if we rejoin it won't be so bad."

A soft whisper on an unfelt breeze carried the voices of the Pretty Fears once again.

"You do not need to be afraid."

"It is peaceful."

"You will be alright."

Lady Baphomet finally turned her head to face Cure Countess, who managed a gentle smile, extending her pink gloved hand out towards the figure. Cautiously, with fingers that trembled under the weight of her decision, Lady Baphomet took the cure's hand.

"I always thought fear...was just something I was, not something I had," Lady Baphomet murmured, moving forward as Countess pulled her into a gentle embrace. Witch, Pumpkin and Spectre all joined in, pulling the two into a tight group hug as light began to shimmer in between them.

"You'll always have a friend in us," Spectre assured.

A soft sound like an exhale carried through the air as Lady Baphomet began to fade. She was nearly gone when a clatter brought their attention downward, a white mask lying where Baphomet once stood. Pumpkin bent down to pick it up, turning it over to see the same goat face with the wide blank eyes.

"It was...a mask?"

"Almost looks like a terror mask," Witch agreed, eying the item curiously.

A shuddering breath brought their attention back to Countess, her arms now empty as Lady Baphomet wholly disappeared and her legs clearly unsteady. The girls tightened their embrace around her, concerned looks flashing between the trio.

"You feeling okay, Boo?" Witch asked with a forced laugh, but as the girl leaned even more heavily against them her chuckles stopped.

Spectre looked over at Cerberus whose heads had all eyes fixed on Countess as her breathing began increasingly haggard. "What is happening to her?"

The three headed dog approached slowly, and Countess' legs gave out from underneath her. Quickly the girls dropped to the ground as well, each holding their companion tightly.

"What is happening to her?!" Pumpkin demanded with dismay etched in her voice and her face.

"We don't know," Russ murmured softly.

"It's...okay."

Countess' voice was soft as she sat limp amongst the circle of friends.

"I'm...going."

"Going?!" Witch cried a little louder than she anticipated, "Going where? You can't go...I mean we...we just got to meet you! The real you!"

"I'm complete...now," Countess said quietly. In spite of her labored breathing her face was serene, looking between the girls and Cerberus. "I'm whole...I can leave now."

As soon as the words passed her lips, sparkles began to fall from her toes and fingertips taking with them pieces of the forgotten warrior.

"No, we can figure out a way to stop this!" Spectre insisted, grabbing Countess' hand tightly as though it would stop the slow disintegration.

Countess shook her head slowly, "Really, it's okay. There's nothing left for me to do...I've righted the wrongs I've caused with your help. Thank you so much."

"How can you be okay with this?!" Pumpkin exclaimed, allowing tears to fall openly down her face for seemingly the first time in her life, making no motion to wipe them away as her hands tightened around Countess.

"I have no more regrets, I feel I am ready. I'll get to see my friends and family again...I hope you understand. You have to let me go."

Witch threw her hat to the ground and buried her face against the girl whose lower limbs had now disappeared entirely. "Aren't you scared?"

The question made her pause, then Countess laughed weakly at the realization, "Yeah...Yeah I am. But I'll be okay."

Cerberus approached tentatively, the girls parting their tight circle to allow them to enter. They placed their paws gently upon the pink cure's chest, each giving a comforting lick to the cure's cheek.

"We…" Cera began to speak, but her soft voice caught in her throat, and Russ looked away ashamedly.

"We are happy we got to say goodbye," Berry finished, Countess nuzzling her face against the dog.

"Me too. You've gotta take good care of these girls for me, okay?"

Cerberus nodded, the trail of disintegrating glitter reaching the pink cure's chest.

"We'll see each other again. When the time comes you don't have to be afraid, I'll be waiting for you," she promised, a tear rolling down her cheek as the rest of her disappeared in a sparkling puff, the teardrop landing in the empty space between the remaining girls.

No one was sure how long they sat there, holding one another so tightly like they too might disappear without being tethered down. No one said a word, but no one needed to. They simply allowed time to pass unobserved like a wakeful sleep, doing nothing but being.

* * *

Author's note: Happy Halloween friends, I wanted to let everyone know there will be an epilogue posted following up so this isn't a real last chapter, but I wasn't able to get it completed by my Halloween deadline. Look for it next week! I love you all, thank you so much for reading!


	26. Chapter 26- Epilogue

Gentle rays of sunlight washed over Spooky! Cure Witch's face, the warmth and the light beckoning her to open her heavy eyelids. With some effort her violet eyes drifted open to find herself back on earth, leaned up with her partners against the gnarled old tree in the woods. Her head rested on Pumpkin's shoulder, Spectre sleeping peacefully on her lap with her long purple pigtails draped over the both of them. Slowly she lifted her head, pushing up the witch's hat that had drifted over to one side of her head while she slept. She swore she could hear voices just beyond the tree line, but saw no one.

Her movement caused Pumpkin's eyes to flutter open sleepily, stretching a bit and looking over to her wakeful girlfriend who smiled gently.

"We made it back," Witch whispered softly, leaning over to exchange a brief kiss with her girlfriend. Soon Spectre too sat up in wakefulness, blinking the sleep from her eyes.  
"Wh-where—"

"We're back home," Pumpkin assured her, hugging the blue haired girl who looked around in a state of temporary confusion.

"But where is Evelyn?" she asked, the other two surveying the land around them with no sign of the little girl, or her true form. Limbs stiff with sleep each girl rose to her feet, stretching out as best they could before beginning a search for the little girl, or the three headed dog she truly was. A dull ache remained in the girls' hearts at the loss of their old companion, surely the universe would not be so cruel as to take away another from them so soon thereafter.

Fall leaves crunched under their boots as they wandered the forest with no signs of any life, let alone the one they were searching for. Overwhelming melancholy began to weigh heavy on their chests, the trio silently exiting the woods together. Even on the streets the town of Red Hollow was unusually quiet, without a single soul in sight. The three wandered, remaining transformed for the time being until they could be certain that no danger lurked among the old familiar streets. Eventually, the trio took refuge in a small bus shelter, gazing out to the street expectantly in hopes of seeing a car puttering by, or a cyclist breeze past, any signs of life at all.

"What if something happened…while we were gone?" Spectre suggested, running her fingers fretfully through her long blue hair with her eyes downcast to the gum riddled cement.

"Maybe," Pumpkin agreed solemnly, Witch resting her chin in her hands deep in thought.  
"But Lady Baphomet is gone, shouldn't we have fixed whatever happened because of her, including anything that went on here?" she asked desperately, "We didn't do all of that for nothing, things have to get better now…"

"Let's just go to my house," Pumpkin suggested, "If we don't see anyone on the way there we can come up with a plan."

* * *

The walk led the trio through the town center, all the shops with their lights off despite the fact that it was now late morning. A knot began twisting in Spectre's stomach with each empty store they passed, terrible imaginings of what may have occurred swirling viciously in her mind. They had nearly cleared the edge of the town center when Witch stopped abruptly, looking around with a critical eye. The other two pretty cure slowed to a halt, looking back at their partner.

"What is it?" Pumpkin asked, Witch's attention now trained to the left along the road that led back to their school.

"Before we go back to your place, can we stop by the school?" she requested, not waiting for an answer as her legs began to carry her down the other road. "I think there might be people there." The sound was faint, just like the sound she thought she had heard upon first waking, but that had almost seemed like remnants of a dream. This seemed so much more tangible, so much more real.

All three of the tired warriors made the trek up to the school where indeed, the closer they grew the more definitively they could pinpoint a sound that resembled voices. The three picked up their pace gradually, a brisk walk turning into a light jog. As soon as the school, and the crowd of people outside of it, came into view the three took off running at full speed the rest of the way, looking every which way to see what the crowd was assembled for. Were there really remnants of Frighton's beasts still lingering on earth?

At the back of the crowd stood a familiar pair, Saanvi and Audrey loitering in the back of the crowd with their hands tightly clasped. As the Pretty Cure slowed behind them, their bright hair and extravagant power up dresses caught the eye of Audrey who turned over her shoulder and gasped, placing one hand over her mouth. Saanvi turned as well to see what the fuss was about, and she too widened her eyes in amazement.

Pumpkin opened her mouth to ask what was going on, but Saanvi spoke first, turning back to the crowd and calling out, "They're here! The Pretty Cure are back!"

Immediately heads began to turn around with all eyes on the three who stood together entirely dumbfounded behind the murmuring mass of locals. Saanvi broke free from Audrey and rushed to Pumpkin, throwing her arms tightly around the orange haired girl as her eyes began to water.  
"I am so…so sorry. For not believing you, for everything…" she whispered, Pumpkin returning the embrace tightly.

"I'm sorry too," Audrey murmured, eyes downcast Witch looked upon her old friend with a small smile.

"We understand…everyone does stupid things when their scared," Witch assured the pair gently with a breathy laugh.

Spectre nodded, "But we're so glad you've come around…"

"It's not just us," Audrey interjected, gesturing to the crowd that looked at the trio eagerly. "Everyone…we're all so sorry."

From the crowd of townsfolk another familiar face appeared, the porcelain skinned Colette pushing her way through the masses and holding out a hand to the three pretty cure. "Please, come to the front. Everyone wants to see you," she said, a small smile spreading across her face. Together the three of them joined her, the crowd parting to let the three pass through unimpeded. Witch took a moment to be thankful for this, mildly concerned someone might step on her impossibly long pigtails that trailed behind her. As they reached the front of the crowd they found a small area cleared around a picnic table in front of the school, and standing atop it was a young girl with patchwork skin and a bright twinkle in her eyes.

"Evelyn!" Spectre cried joyously, running up to the child and throwing her arms around her.

"We were looking everywhere for you!" Witch added, her smile quivering slightly.

"What is going on here?" Pumpkin inquired, turning back to face the crowd.

Evelyn smiled, gesturing for the three of them to climb up upon the table with her. "I made a promise to you all that I wouldn't let anyone speak badly about you. So as soon as I got back I gathered every person I could to tell them all how you saved me, and how you saved each of them too!"

The Cures climbed up onto the table, Spectre scooping up Evelyn and holding her up so the three didn't tower over her before the eager crowd.

"Here they are! The brave Pretty Cure who returned all the missing people, and rid everyone of all those terrible fearful feelings!" The crowd erupted in applause, people throughout the mass shouting joyous cheers.

"Thank you for bringing home my daughter!" Emily's mother thanked grasciously, holding her daughter in a tight embrace.

"Pretty Cure, thank you for saving me!" Colette cheered, the joy on her face unusual for the solemn girl.

Witch spied Peyton's bushy red hair bobbing towards the front of the crowd until she finally burst into the front. "Thank you Pretty Cure, for believing in us even when we didn't believe in you!" she cried, tears beginning to streak her cheeks.

"Thank you for making it possible to hope again!"

"Thank you for fighting for our happiness!"

"Thank you for never giving up on us!"

The outpouring of support filled their hearts with unquantifiable joy, and the three held one another tightly with Evelyn sandwiched in between. Each was certain in that moment that all the heartache had been worth it. This feeling of immeasurable happiness could not be tainted by the uncertainty of fear. Though fear was a necessary place to pass through from time to time, it was no place to live, and this boundless bliss would always remain to welcome them home.

* * *

The alarm sounded and Sofía sat up abruptly, brushing her hair out of her face and clamoring out of bed. Once she was suitably dressed the girl trotted quickly down the stairs nearly bowling over her brother who approached from the bottom.

"Ah, sorry Andres," she apologized, swinging into the kitchen.

"What are you in such a hurry for?" he asked, poking his head through the kitchen doorway as Sofía tossed two slices of bread into the toaster.

"Today's the first day of Pretty Cure camp! I can't be late, those kids are counting on me," Sofía insisted, dashing back up the stairs to brush her hair. Andres loitered in the doorway with his hands behind his back, looking at the ground sheepishly for a moment before he spoke.

"Hey, remember that little pink bat you used to keep in your room?"

Sofía jumped slightly at the question, but nodded slowly, eyes locked on her brother in the mirror. Her family may have known about being a Pretty Cure, but keeping an animal in the house was still a huge no-no. How had he found out?

"I noticed I hadn't seen it around, and I thought you might've lost it. Dad's been teaching me how to sew and stuff so I uh… I made you another one just in case." In one hand he held out a small stuffed bat with bright pink ears and a stitched on smile. "I mean dad helped too but I thought you might want to take it with you today, as a good luck charm." Sofía turned around and her brother averted his gaze, though he kept his hand outstretched towards her. Gingerly she lifted the stuffed animal from his hand and wrapped her arms tightly around him.

"Thanks, that means a lot."

* * *

With her stuffed bat in her bag Sofía peeled out of the driveway and onto the road. When the school board pitched the idea to them of hosting a weekend activity camp for grade schoolers, she thought it was ingenious. Getting Bing to promise to work with kids had proved to be the biggest challenge, but eventually she caved. The first stop was Fay's house, the towering blonde waiting for her with a duffel bag at her feet by the front door. As soon as Sofía pulled up the long dirt drive she trotted up to the car and tossed her bag in the trunk before sliding into the passenger seat and giving her girlfriend a quick peck on the cheek.

"Tyler will be out in just a second, he couldn't find his tennis shoes," she explained, the young boy appearing shortly thereafter in the doorway. He hopped down the porch steps with vigor, Mr. and Mrs. Weaver standing in the doorway and waving to the girls in the car. Clutching his backpack straps tightly Fay's younger brother slid eagerly into the backseat.

"Hi Sofía!" he chirped, buckling himself up as they pulled out of the driveway with a wave to Fay's parents.

"Hey there Ty! How's it going?"

"Good. I'm excited to meet new people at camp today."

"I'm glad! I think everyone will have a lot of fun."

* * *

Next stop on the list was Bing's house, the volleyball prince standing in the driveway and talking to her mother who Sofía and Fay both agreed they had never seen set foot outside the house before. "I just want you to know how proud I am of you," the woman spoke, pulling her daughter into a hug. "I couldn't have asked for a better daughter." Bing returned the hug, embarrassed to see Sofía and Fay grinning at the both of them inside the car. Waving goodbye to her mother Bing climbed into the backseat alongside Tyler, and the car puttered off once again.

Arriving at the town's recreation center they found a welcoming committee waiting for them outside. There were people they hadn't met, and plenty they had. Peyton, Audrey, Saanvi, Nia, and Colette all waved as they parked, each of them wearing matching Camp Pretty Cure tee shirts and bright smiles.

"Hey everyone! This is my little brother Tyler," Fay introduced, leading the boy up to the group of volunteers. "Could someone show him where the rest of the kids are?"

"I can!" the tiniest of the volunteers pushed her way to the front of the group, reaching out a hand to the boy who approached shyly. "Hey there! My name's Evelyn!"

"I'm Tyler," the boy responded with a timid smile, looking down at the ground.

"Nice to meet you Tyler, come with me I'll introduce you to all the other kids," she insisted cheerfully, taking the boy's hand and guiding him into the building.

"Well I guess we had better get this party started!" Sofía cheered.

One of the adult volunteers, whom the Pretty Cure recognized from their previous scheduled appearance, nodded enthusiastically. "We've got a lot of kids signed up, and even more for next week! They're all excited to get to spend the day with you, so why don't we get you all in there!"

* * *

The room was abuzz with the chatter of children, all of whom sat in little plastic chairs at tables set up throughout the space. Each child had a small name tag affixed to their shirts with their desired Pretty Cure name, all the kids excitedly explaining their Pretty Cure selves to their new friends. Evelyn seemed to be having the most difficult time explaining to her peers how to pronounce "Cure Cerberus" to the others, but took it all in stride. The hum of their conversation stopped immediately when a puff of purple smoke burst into the room, quickly followed by orange and blue clouds that glittered under the overhead lights. With a flourish all three girls appeared in their Spooky! forms as the smoke dissipated, each striking their signature pose.

"The mischievous silhouette on a moonlit night fighting for hope! Spooky! Cure Witch!"

"The warm smile on an autumn night fighting for happiness! Spooky! Cure Pumpkin!"

"The ghostly chill on a frightful night fighting for love! Spooky! Cure Spectre!"

"Evildoers beware, for we are the ambassadors of fear and emissaries of courage! We are Terribly Spooky! Pretty Cure!"

The children all stood and cheered excitedly, even the volunteers looking impressed with their little performance. The rest of the day was spent with the children, doing whatever it was the camp goers wanted to do.

Despite her reservations around children, Pumpkin proved to be a hit as kids climbed all over her, hugging around her legs or swinging from her arms as they playfully attempted to pull her to the ground. Even Pumpkin couldn't help but smile as she swung the kids around, finally giving in and falling to the floor, careful not to smush anyone as they all climbed victorious on top of her.

Spectre sat at a table with a group that had invited her to their tea party, where she sipped imaginary tea with dignity and grace. With her pinky extended she leaned forward, asking one of the girls for more of her delicious brew.

Witch sat at a table of kids who were drawing pictures of what they would look like as Pretty Cure, pausing to giggle occasionally at the purple cure's terrible drawing of herself. Another camper managed to snatch the hat straight off her head, running around with a group of his buddies as each took turns trying it on. A small group of girls sat behind her, braiding and twisting and adding all manner of beads and bobbles to her long purple pigtails before creating beautiful Pretty Cure hairdos for one another.

* * *

When the day drew to an end, all the Curelings quieted down as the trio approached the front of the room. "We really want to thank everyone for making our first day of Camp Pretty Cure a success!" Witch cheered, earning a smattering of quiet cheers in response.

"We really hope you all had fun too," Pumpkin added, more cheers punctuating the end of her sentence.

"And lastly, we hope to see you all next week too!" Spectre finished.

A young girl in the back of the room raised her hand to speak. "Will we ever really become Pretty Cures?" she asked, a few murmurs of approval rising out of the crowd of children around her. The three Spooky! Cures looked at one another for a moment before Witch spoke up once again.

"Right now there is peace, and the Pretty Cure aren't really needed," she explained, "but there may be a time in the future when they are. And if we are gone by then, I am sure each and every one of you would make fantastic warriors. But as long as the three of us are here we promise we will fight to protect this world. Wherever there is someone living in fear we will be there to hold their hand until they can find hope again. If you are ever afraid, know that we are right beside you cheering you on. And you can do the same, be the light for those around you living in darkness. In that way, you are all already Pretty Cure."

* * *

The three girls chattered on as Sofía drove the gang back to her house once all the children had gone home. Even Bing spoke animatedly about the kids she encountered that day, and the three laughed as they opened up the door to Sofía's family home. Sofía was surprised to find no one sitting in the living room as they entered, and she popped her head into the kitchen to see if anyone was there.

"Hello?" she called, receiving no response. She looked back over her shoulder at Fay and Bing, both of whom shrugged uncertainly. Checking upstairs they found no one, but opening the back door revealed Andres, as well as Mr. and Mrs. Lara hunched over in the back yard.

"What's going on?" Sofía asked as the three came outside to inspect. "What are you all doing out here?" Mrs. Lara turned over her shoulder and beckoned the girls closer.

"We found this little guy here, and it just won't leave! It's so strange," she explained, the girls each peering over to see what they huddled around. Before them stood a dog that sat wagging its tail happily, looking up at them with bright purple eyes. Its fur was perfectly split down the middle, white on one side and black on the other. The three girls froze, looking at one another

"Have you ever seen a dog with markings like that?" Mr. Lara asked in awe, holding out a hand which the dog immediately nuzzled.

"Dad can we keep it?" Andres pleaded to his parents, who looked warily at each other.

"I don't know Andres…dogs are a lot of work," Mrs. Lara reminded gently.

"I'll help take care of it too!" Sofía exclaimed, the dog dropping to the ground and rolling onto its back playfully. "I think it wants us to take it in, don't you think?" The dog's purple eyes looked up at Sofía, closing one for the briefest of moments.

"Oh my god Sofía did you see that? It totally winked at you!" Andres exclaimed joyfully. "Please please please can we keep it?"

Mr. Lara shrugged, his wife heaving a long, drawn out sigh. "I know you two have always wanted a pet…so you have to promise to take care of it or else we'll have to give it up," she said sternly, though Andres leapt to his feet with joy.

"Thank you so much mama! What should we name it?"

"How about Cerberus?" Fay piped up, Bing nodding thoughtfully at the suggestion.

"I like that name," Sofía decided, the dog jumping up and barking playfully, tail wagging.

"Seems like the dog likes it too!" Andres laughed, petting the mysterious canine on the head. "Cerberus sounds good."

* * *

That evening they all spent playing with the new dog, which apparently knew quite a few impressive tricks. Mr. Lara was convinced that the dog was some kind of circus runaway with the ability it showed to listen to commands, and the three girlfriends had to try not to let their amusement show. As the night grew darker, the trio eventually fell asleep dog piled on Sofía's bed with Cerberus curled up at their feet. Sofía clutched the small stuffed bat tightly to her chest as she lay between her partners. A gentle jostling, like the softest tremor in her heart, let her know she was here as well.

With a small smile and a peaceful sigh, she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Author's note:

This is it! The end to Spooky! Precure :') I've never been so rapid fire with a project before, usually it stews around in my brain for like a year, then I start sketching, then I outline and usually never even get to writing. Altogether from conception to completion this project has taken less than a year, so in a way I almost feel like I haven't gotten to spend enough time with this story and these girls.

That said, I'd like to do a "movie" standalone story in the future, and maybe even release updated chapters of the story itself since I kept myself on such a tight schedule I feel I could definitely increase the quality with revisits and edits.

Thank you all so much for going on this adventure with me, I really enjoyed myself! The precure community has been so sweet and welcoming to me which I really appreciate. I wouldn't have cranked this out so fast if it weren't for you all inspiring me to continue!


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